His Only Princess
by Anzu-chan
Summary: It's been one year since the events at Cross Academy, since Yuuki left them. One year, and they're still left with the shell of a man that once was the great Zero Kiryuu. As one girl tries to break through to him, she's forced into her own trialing situation; her mystery fiance. Who is he, and what is his ultimate goal? How will everyone react? How will HE react?
1. Prologue

Hello! :D I promise, I'll keep this A/N short, but it is important to the background of this story. I've been a follower of the VK story since it came out, but, I'm far from the average Yuuki/Zero fanatic. I actually really don't like Yuuki (please, don't hate me =_=") I do love her and Kaname together, though. I'm a Zori fan (ZeroxYori) even though nothing like that even comes close to happening, it's canon in my own little warped mind ^_^ So, that gave birth to this plot bunny. As you may (or may not) know, Yori has a fiance, but this man has remained a secret to everyone, her included. This story takes place a year after the event with Rido at Cross Academy, where we'll finally meet the mystery fiance, and romantic rivalries will bloom once more within their world.

Okay, I'm going to stop before I loose anyone who may be reading. I'll end this here with a hope that you all will stick with me as this story unfolds. Without further adieu, the beginning of His Only Princess.

Vampire Knight, copyright-Matsuri Hino

* * *

Prologue

* * *

Twelve months. One year. It had been exactly one year since the traumatic event that took place at Cross Academy, the event that over half of the then trembling students had forgotten, their memories having been stripped completely of any knowledge of the Night Class' true identities.

Only a few had been privileged to remember, if that's what they wished to call it. Those few had fought head-on with Chairman Cross and Zero Kiryuu, swearing to never utter a word of that which they knew to the students who would soon forget, or anyone else for that matter. The two finally caved, upholding them to their word, leaving a total of three students left to remember_ everything_. Including the fact that one of their very own classmates, Yuuki Cross, was the Pureblood vampire princess. It came as a shock to everyone, but more so to one girl than the rest. Sayori Wakaba, Yuuki's best friend since Junior High, and practically her sister. As the events unfolded, not to mention her almost being attacked by a vampire under Rido's control, only to be saved by Aidou Hanabusa and Yuuki herself, she began to learn why her friend had been so secretive, disappearing without warning, never telling her things that occurred while her and Zero were prefects. It was because she was a vampire. But, not just any vampire. She was just as powerful in their realm as a Queen would be to the human world. Sister of Kaname Kuran (and to Yori's new-found disgust, lover.) Surely they couldn't actually be related if they did such things, could they? Not that that mattered to the young girl. Despite everything, Yuuki was still her best friend, and she was certain she would always love her. She could only sit and hope that she would return to her again someday. But, not only her, but to Zero, too. The silver haired Hunter had immersed himself in some state of depression, she was sure, for he was never around anymore, always gone off from the Academy. And even when she was lucky enough to stumble upon one of his hiding places, courtesy of a teacher sending her after him, his responses were always terse and clipped before he would stalk off, making it clear he wished to speak to no one. Yuuki had left them with the broken shell of a young man who once was so wonderful, and while it may not have been her direct place, Yori couldn't help but want to reach out to him, give him some kind of comfort in this time of turmoil.

Yuuki had left her behind with a hole in her heart, a sense of betrayal, and a broken Zero.

* * *

It's just the prologue. I'm going to attempt for Chapter 1 to be up tonight as well, because I'm too involved with this idea to leave it sitting for too long. But, if I don't, it's only because it's New Years Eve. Which I hope you all have a great one! This part is **sooooo** boring! We all already know this, but I just haaaad to set ground for the story to take place. I'm nit-picky. Sorry :(

-IdleScribe


	2. His Only Princess, Chapter 1

His Only Princess: Chapter 1

* * *

First days were always the most difficult.

Today was no exception. It was her first day back to class, back to the room she and many others had been stowed away in as a battle raged outdoors. She sat on her bed, mulling over the fact that, not only was she was alone at the school now, but her best friend was gone. _**Gone**_. It was such a hateful word, one that left a sting in the depth of her heart, the part which she had taken with her, apparently. Yuuki. It may have been a year, but she still missed her, and wished so desperately for her to return, if not only her safety. No one was aware as to where Kaname had vanished to with her, not even the stragglers from the disbanded Night Class. But, they were gone now, too. And a few of the Day Class students had even left, having been pulled out due to their parents believing the school was "structurally dangerous." If only they knew the truth.

"Sayori-san?"

Yori's head snapped up, having been pulled from her reverie, only to meet the eyes of one of her classmates. She couldn't remember her name, so she just tilted her head in question.

The girl tugged at one of her ebony braids, giving Yori a concerned look.

"Class starts in five minutes. Aren't you coming?"

That was when she noticed she wasn't even dressed yet, still clad in her white nightdress. Heat bloomed across her face and she waved a hand in dismissal to the other.

"Yes, I am. Ah, could you tell the teacher I'll be a little late?"

"Mm, of course," she smiled and turned on her heel, braids flying behind her, and disappeared down the hall, closing their dorm door after her. Correction:_ her_ dorm door. It was, in fact, only her that occupied the small room, now.

_No need in dwelling on that now_. Yori sighed and rose from her bed to begin getting ready for the un-doubtfully long day ahead of her.

* * *

"Alright, everyone. Please, answer the following questions and turn them in before the end of class."

They had a new ethics teacher, Kaito Takamiya. Some students had met him briefly before, and gossip was that he was the new target of the Day Class girls affection, since the Night Class was no longer around. Not that they knew anything about that. Their minds had been wiped clean, like a chalkboard at the end of a school day. Now, school felt more like school instead of some kind of huge fan-base. It was a relief to Yori, and she was certain it had to be for Zero, too. No longer did he have to stand guard at their gates, holding off the hormonal herds of girls ready to stampede. Those gates were pretty much all that remained, though. The battle between Rido, Yuuki and Zero had taken a toll on the structure, cracking open the walls until it collapsed under the damage, ending in a pile of rubble and dust. Chairman Cross had once mentioned something about having the dormitories reconstructed, but it was only a brief thought, and so far no work had been performed. Besides, who would live in that building, anyways? The Night Class would more than likely not want to return, or if they did, only a few probably would be able to. And what did the Chairman expect? For Kaname to bring Yuuki and himself out of hiding and return to the very place that almost destroyed her? It was very unlikely.

Yori leaned on her hand, her chin cradled by her palm, and allowed her gaze to wander to the window, not focusing on her work at all, which was an unusual thing for her. She had been told bits and pieces of information as the year had progressed, and was now able to fit some things into the giant puzzle that was now her world, one where vampires existed. She figured she was lucky enough that they had allowed her to keep her memories-how else could she bear with her best friend being not being here if she didn't know what really happened?-but she also decided it best not to tread potentially dangerous waters and ask any questions. She only waited, the information finding its own way to her.

Winter was fast approaching, bringing with it the dawn of a new year, as well as some very painful memories. She thought about the countless snow fights she and Yuuki had had after the first snowfall, staying up all night, telling stories in front of the fireplace, exchanging gifts at the New Year. It really wasn't fair, not fair at all.

"Wakaba-kun?"

A sharp poke against her arm almost made her fall out of her seat, and she was met with the disgruntled face of Mr. Takamiya.

"Were you planning on doing your assignment any time soon?" The irritation at her misbehavior was evident, but there was also a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Really, why was such a young man allowed to be a teacher?

Yori bowed her head. "I'm sorry, Takamiya-sensei," she apologized briefly and turned to her work. She heard him scoff and he tapped his ruler-what he had used to poke her-against her head.

"There's less than ten minutes left in class, Wakaba. Take that with you as homework, and, here. Take this, too."

It was a copy of the paper she already had.

"Takamiya-sensei, I-,"

"It's for Kiryuu. Seeing as how he so gratefully decided to not join us today, he'll need someone to give him his work. You two are close, aren't you? Make sure he gets it for me, would you?" Takamiya winked at her before walking back down to his desk.

When the bell rang for the end of class, Yori stuffed her things in her brown shoulder bag, ready to leave, when someone made her halt.

"Wakaba, could I speak to you for a moment?"

She turned and saw Mr. Takamiya sitting at his desk, his chin perched on the steeple he formed with his fingers. He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she approached him.

"Are you, by any chance, Zero's girlfriend?"

She probably would have laughed at the absurdity of that question at any other time.

"Eh?" she was floored by his boldness, barely taking notice of how he called Zero by his first name instead of his last, and without an honorific attached to boot. "N-no! We're only...friends," she sounded so unsure of herself as she spoke, because she was. She really couldn't try to say they were friends, because they weren't. They had barely even spoken. "Actually, a friend of a friend to each other." That sounded more correct.

Mr. Takamiya seemed to think over her words for a moment, humming thoughtfully before he stood. Yori stepped back from him.

"Sorry, I've crossed my boundaries. I apologize for being too forward, Wakaba-kun." He turned his back on her. "You may leave now."

Yori nodded, not really caring that he couldn't see, and all but ran out of the classroom.

"Hm, a friend of a friend? How odd," Takamiya crossed over to the window, dragging his long fingers down the slightly frosted glass, leaving trails in their wake. "If that's the case, then why in the world are you hanging around her so much, Zero?"

* * *

Panting for breath, Yori finally stopped, doubling over with her hands on her knees in front of the door to her room. She had made a beeline from the classroom to the girl's dormitory, not stopping for anything. A stitch attacked her side mercilessly, and she gripped at it tightly with her hand while trying to steady her breathing. Once she got a hold of herself some, she stepped out of the hallway and into her room so as to avoid any wandering students. Most of them were at the extra-curricular activities at this time of the day, or supplementary class if assigned them, so the dorm was practically empty. Throwing her bag down on her bed, she followed it in suit, flopping down on her back and closing her eyes.

_"Are you, by any chance, Zero's girlfriend?"_

She shook her head vigorously, causing her hair to splay out messily.

"What kind of question was that anyways?" she groaned quietly, pushing her bangs out of her eyes. Her neck felt stiff from the tension and stress of the day and the forming of a headache poked around behind her eyes.

And then she remembered the task she had been assigned with. Giving Zero his work from class.

"Shoot!" she yelled, turning over and burying her face in her pillow. She had completely forgotten to try and find him after Mr. Takamiya had confronted her like that. And he'd certainly be angry tomorrow if he found out she hadn't delivered his work. Jerking up at almost break-neck speed, she rose to her feet after the dizzy spell her movements caused had passed, grabbed her bag and rushed back outside.

* * *

She had been searching the grounds for some time now, and still there had been no trace of Zero anywhere. She even went as far as asking students returning from their activities if they had happened to bump into him, but she should have also known better. Zero was really good at avoiding people if he didn't want to be bothered, and most of the students avoided him anyways, always saying he was scary.

The temperature began to get colder as the sun dropped below the horizon, and a tremor raced up her spine, making her wish she had grabbed her coat before running out like a maniac. Her breath came out in white puffs as she huffed and trudged around, and she rubbed her arms with her hands in an attempt to give her body some warmth. The first snowfall hadn't come yet, but the ground was covered in frost, the grass crunching beneath her boots as she walked. Other than that and the sounds of her shivering breath, it was silent on the Cross Academy grounds. A new curfew had been instilled after the incident, since rogue vampires had made their way onto the campus in order to prey upon the students and deliver them as a "gift" to their master, and now, students were required to be in their dormitory by seven thirty. Yori wasn't sure of the time, but judging by how dark it was getting, it couldn't be too far off from her breaking curfew.

"Darn it, where is he?"

Just as she finished speaking, her voice dying in the cold winds, a twig snapped behind her. She froze, body becoming tense as terror coursed through her. Too afraid to look behind her and knowing she could never outrun something if it were to chase her, she stayed rooted to her spot, lowering her head and trying to calm her erratic heart, waiting for the worse to come. But, as she continued to stand there, everything remained the same. Nothing jumped out from behind her and tried to bite her; as a matter of fact, nothing happened at all. She didn't even hear a noise behind her. If it was a vampire, surely it would have done something by now.

Cautiously, she turned her head a fraction to see if anything _was_ behind her. That was when she caught a flash of silver in her peripheral vision.

Zero?

"Zero-kun!" she exclaimed in relief, whirling around to face the young man. He stood a good ten feet from her, his arms crossed and his typical bored look on his face. She placed her hand over her heart, willing it back to a normal rate, not noticing how Zero's eyes followed the movement before focusing at the ground directly before him, a minuet crimson color tinging his eyes.

"Wakaba, what are you doing out here?" His throat ached slightly, and him speaking did nothing to pacify the pain. If he was honest with himself, he was so hungry. It had been close to a month since he had properly fed, and the blood tablets the Chairman provided him could only help so much.

Yori steeled herself and took a step towards him. He shifted uncomfortably as she neared him, forcing himself to hold his breath for as long as he could handle.

"Takamiya-sensei wanted me to give you your homework," she unbuckled her bag and pulled out a single sheet of paper, waving it in front of him. He snatched it from her, glaring daggers at her.

"That's _all_?" He hissed through his teeth, keeping his eyes trained on hers. He saw her cringe a little at the tone he had adopted, but did nothing to take it back. "Go back inside, Wakaba. You'll get sick." He turned his back on her, expecting her to scurry off like the rest of them did when they were in his presence. No one could handle being near him without wanting to have a nervous breakdown, no one except the Chairman, sometimes, and..._her_.

Obviously, he had her pegged wrong from the get-go.

"Zero-kun, are you...alright?"

He scoffed at the stupidity of her question, and his teeth ground together so hard he was sure they'd break if they weren't so strong. Of course he wasn't _okay_. He'd never be okay again.

"Inside, Wakaba!" He ordered, storming away from the petite girl who only seemed to have concern for him. She could save it. He didn't need, or want, anyone's pity.

Slightly wounded from the way he spoke to her, Yori made her way back to her dorm. Turning her head to glance over her shoulder, she barely caught a glimpse of Zero's back as he vanished into the night.

"You're not the only one who lost her. She was my best friend, too," she whispered to herself.

* * *

TADA! I got it up with two hours to spare until 2013. There's Chapter 1 :) Not too much happened, but it's set the stage for bigger events, so to speak.

Obviously, Yori isn't aware that Zero is a vampire yet, but she does know he's a vampire hunter. What did you guys think? Too fast or slow? Let me know what you thought :) **{rxr} **I'll have the update dates on my profile, so keep an eye out for those. I'll try to keep a very small amount of time between the updates, though.

Until Chapter 2!

-IdleScribe


	3. His Only Princess, Chapter 2

His Only Princess: Chapter 2

* * *

The second day was only slightly easier.

Yori was on her way to her class that morning-Mr. Takamiya had scheduled a ridiculously early study session for them, claiming it'd help them for the upcoming test-when she was stopped suddenly.

"Yori-chan!"

She recognized the animated tone before even turning to face them.

"Good morning, Chairman Cross," she bowed politely, smiling at the vivacious man. Ever since she and Yuuki had become friends, he had treated her like a second daughter, always addressing her in a very endearing fashion.

His glasses were slipping down his nose, and his hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, as though he had rushed to get to her.

"I was hoping I'd catch you this morning," he stated. Well, that basically confirmed her thoughts. She giggled quietly to herself. His expression went slightly solemn before he spoke again. "How have you been, dear?"

Her mind went blank for what to tell him. She'd been depressed, lonely, and heartbroken. But, she also knew that he was probably feeling the same exact things, only to a higher degree. After all, Yuuki had been his daughter for about ten years. And now, he was left with a solemn, closed off "step-son."

"I've been alright. It's gotten better over time," she lied blatantly, giving him the brightest, most convincing smile she could possibly muster. If he were to pay that much attention, he would have noticed how it didn't reach her dulled hazel eyes.

Chairman Cross' shoulders sagged, almost as though there had been some invisible string keeping them drawn up and tense, and her words had been the scissors.

"I'm glad to hear that at least one of you is doing any better." He sounded so relieved, and she decided she was more than glad that she had decided to lie to him. Growing up, Yori was taught very strictly by her parents that lying was something she should never do, but, as she grew, she learned the hard way that sometimes one had to in order to protect those they cared for. Just like Yuuki had lied to her for all of those years, and she in turn had been lied to, too.

Suddenly, Chairman Cross perked up. "Yori-chan, have you seen Zero this morning?"

She shook her head. He frowned, his bottom lip jutting out in a hilarious looking pout.

"Zero-kun is never around!" He whined, shocking Yori and making her want to laugh at the same time. That man could sure be comical sometimes. "I have something I need to give him."

"He is in my next class, given that he actually shows up today. I could give it to him for you," she offered.

"No!" he burst out, then paused. Laughing nervously, he added, "that's no need, sweet Yori. I don't want to trouble you. I'll just find him later. It was good getting to see you! Bye!" his singsong goodbye echoed in the hallway as he vanished into his office.

"That was odd." Shrugging her shoulders, she pulled her bag up higher on her shoulders and continued on to class. She'd already spaced off and, seemingly, gotten on the bad side of Mr. Takamiya. She certainly didn't want to be late and anger him further and end up with supplementary class. However, her morning was packed with more surprises than she'd assumed.

Once in the room, she became aware of two things: one, Zero was actually there. He had his head buried in the crook of his arm, the tips of his bangs brushing his desk. He didn't seem at all bothered by the noisiness of the other students in the room, so he must have been asleep. Either that, or he had become_ really_ good at blocking people out. And the second thing, the seat next to her wasn't empty.

A girl with short, dark brown hair sat there, hands folded in her lap, minding her own business. No one was bothering her, and she wasn't bothering them. Yori couldn't see her face, but her side profile resembled Yuuki quite a bit. It made her heart falter a little.

When she reached her seat, the girl looked up at her, and the resemblance wasn't so much anymore. Where Yuuki had wide, chocolate colored eyes, this girl had deep blue ones. Her face was also more narrow than Yuuki's was, making her appear older. She smiled at Yori and jumped up from her chair, catching the attention of a few people.

"Good morning! I'm Matsuki Naomi," she stuck her hand out to Yori. "What's your name?"

"Ah, Wakaba Sayori," she spoke without thinking, still trying to get used to the sudden burst of energy from the girl.

"It's nice to meet you, Sayori-san! I'm new here, and it looks like we're desk partners," Naomi stepped back and bowed dramatically. "Please take care of me!"

Yori only nodded her head, embarrassed by how loud she was being, and her eyes flickered unconsciously to Zero, who began to stir. Naomi caught the direction she was looking in, and her own eyes widened when she saw him.

"Hi! I'm Matsuki Naomi!" she waved at Zero, whose eyes were narrowed from either having just woken up or from irritation.

"I know. This entire school probably knows because of how loud you are."

Yori burst out in laughter, gripping the poor, confused girl's blazer sleeve in her hand and yanking her down with her.

"Naomi-san, when did you get here?" She was hopeful her question would distract Naomi. Sure, Zero may have been woken up by her, but that wasn't any real reason for him to be so rude to her. He had nothing to keep him awake at night anymore since he no longer had to patrol the grounds while the Night Class attended their classes, so him getting no sleep was his own fault.

His foul mood didn't seem to ruin her exuberance at all.

"Just this morning. But, I had to be interviewed a week before I arrived. It was so complicated!"

That peaked Yori's curiosity. "Interviewed?"

"Yeah. Chairman Cross wanted to speak to both me and my parents, but then halfway through the interview, he accidentally cut himself on a piece of glass he had on his desk. Blood was everywhere. It was really scary." She spoke a mile a minute, never seeming to stop for breath.

It made sense, though. Of course Chairman Cross would want to interview potential incoming students. And the whole "accidental cut" was his test to see if the student or their parents were vampires. He really was a clever man.

"I see. I guess things have changed since I came here," Yori rubbed the back of her neck when Naomi raised an eyebrow in question to her, hoping the girl wouldn't see through her.

"Maybe. Sayori-san?" Naomi grabbed her hands and tugged her closer to her, smiling brightly. "I really hope we can be great friends."

Her statement flabbergasted Yori. She didn't know how to reply to her; she hadn't had any other friends, and didn't think too much on it. All she really thought about was getting her best friend back, so she nodded to Naomi, a soft smile gracing her face. Seemingly satisfied, Naomi released Yori's hands and turned to face the front of the room, just as Mr. Takamiya entered.

"Good morning, class. I'm certain all of you are ready to study hard, right?"

* * *

Class had dragged on for what seemed like hours, but it ended around noon. The bell rang, and everyone left the room in a hurry, ready to rest their over-stuffed minds. Yori was packing up her things when someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned her head and saw Naomi.

"Sayori-san, I was wondering if you could help me find my dorm room. I haven't been shown around yet."

"Of course. Come with me." Together, she and Naomi went to leave their aisle, almost running into someone. Yori rocked back on her heels to somewhat stop herself, causing Naomi to crash into her. Yori shot her hand out to catch her before she hit the ground, right when a hand wrapped around her forearm, righting her. She raised her eyes to the person who caught her, ready with a thanks of appreciation, but the words failed when she saw who it was.

Zero looked agitated, as he seemed to usually look when he was around her, for some strange reason, but he still held her arm, his hand easily wrapped entirely around it.

"Thank you," she mumbled, pulling her arm back sharply, causing him to release his hold. Her's and Naomi's hands still clasped, she led the girl around him and out of the room.

"Well, that was interesting."

Zero's emotionless gaze met with Mr. Takamiya, who looked thoroughly amused with the event that had just happened. "Hm, maybe she thought into what I said to her yesterday." He tapped his chin with his middle finger, all but smirking at the vampire before him.

"Kaito-,"

"Relax, Zero. It's not like I told her you're a vampire or anything," Takamiya chuckled and walked back to his desk, the heels of his shoes clicking loudly against the floor. "I just asked her if she was your girlfriend."

Zero rolled his eyes. "You really are insane, aren't you?"

"Why, I never," Takamiya feigned offense at his words. "What? Are you saying she's not worthy of being your girlfriend? I think she's cute."

"You stay away from her!"

Takamiya raised his hands, chuckling.

"Whoa there, tiger. Don't let me get you all riled up. I know what it is, though. You're waiting, aren't you, Kiryuu? For your precious little Pureblood-,"

He moved at such a speed that Takamiya didn't even see him move, and before he knew it, he was pinned up against the chalkboard by Zero.

"Don't speak of her," he threatened, eyes glinting dangerously. His grip tightened the slightest bit.

"Let go, Zero. I meant no harm in what I said. You obviously know it's true, otherwise you wouldn't have had such a strong reaction." He knocked Zero's hand away. "I know you're up to something though," he jabbed his thumb in the direction of the door, where Yori and Naomi had left just a few minutes ago. "You wouldn't hang around Wakaba so much if you weren't. What is it? Does she remind you of your little princess?"

"Kaito, that's enough! She's _nothing_ like Yuuki!"

Takamiya seemed pleased with himself at getting Zero to show so much emotion.

"Then I'm relieved. She'll have a promising life ahead of her." Before Zero could so much as make a sound of protest at his words, he was already nearing the door. "Don't be late for class tomorrow, Kiryuu. You'll be getting a healthy dose of supplementary classes if you are."

* * *

"What's your room number?"

"It's...oh, here it is! 316." Naomi stopped in front of her door, showing Yori the paper she had in her hand with the number 316 scrawled on it. It was her room.

"We share a room," she said in a hushed tone, not really believing it. She knew that most everyone had to have a roommate, unless it was the Representative or President, but she hadn't expected for her to get a new one so soon.

"Really That's exciting!" Naomi cheered and clasped her hands around one of Yori's, who remained unresponsive. "Eh, Sayori-san, are you alright?"

"Hm?"

Naomi glanced at her worriedly. "You just, kind of froze. Is something wrong?"

There was a lot wrong, but she couldn't tell Naomi about it.

She shook her head. "No, everything's fine. I'm glad that we're roommates, Naomi-san." She gave her hands a friendly squeeze and turned to unlock her..._their _door, and flipped the switch on the wall, bringing the room to life, bathed in a warm yellow.

Blue eyes turned bright as they examined the small space. "It's such a pretty room."

It was a rather simple, humble little room, much like the girl who had inhabited it by herself until today. Two single beds were on either side, pressed up against the walls, a desk sitting between them. There was a window on Yori's side, with simple pink curtains hanging around it. She had picked that side of the room just because of the window because she had always enjoyed watching outside ever since she was a little girl.

"I suppose it is. Maybe I'm just too used to it," Yori dropped her bag on her bed and wiggled out of her uniform jacket, hanging it on the bed post. "Do you want to work on our homework together?" She may not have been entirely ready to accept a potential new friend in her life, but she would do her best to be nice to her.

"Yes. I don't have any clue how I'll get through Takamiya-sensei's class," Naomi covered her face with her hands and groaned. Yori only laughed.

* * *

They both finished their homework rather quickly. Naomi was much smarter than she gave herself credit for, Yori noticed. They had even studied and extra half an hour just to make sure they were ready.

Now, the dark haired girl was fast asleep, her even breathing the only sound in the room. Yori sat up in her bed, clutching her duvet close to her neck, peering out of the window. It was too dark to see anything except for the few stars in the sky, but she found it tranquil.

"Yuuki, I hope you're doing well. I hope you're not too worried about things." It had become her ritual to speak to Yuuki every night since she left. Even though she knew her message would never find its way to her, it made her feel better just being able to say the things plaguing her thoughts.

The wind began to pick up outside, howling and rattling the window, startling Yori. She squinted her eyes, trying to adjust them to the inky blackness, when she finally caught sight of it.

Snow.

Without even thinking, she threw her blanket off of her and flew across the room, stuffing on her boots, tugging a jacket over top of her nightwear, and running out of the room, not closing the door all the way so as not to wake her slumbering roommate. Carefully, she maneuvered her way through the hallways, knowing exactly where to go to avoid the dorm monitor since she and Yuuki had sneaked out before to go play in the snow when she would return from her patrol. Once she made it outside, the frigid winds hit her smartly, waking her up and causing goosebumps to erupt on the exposed parts of her legs.

Snowflakes, though few and far between, sprinkled from the nighttime sky, some clinging to her chestnut colored hair. There, on the cold ground, Yori dropped to her knees, un-shed tears stinging her eyes.

"Yuuki, I miss you."

* * *

Zero's nerves were thoroughly grated after his unpleasant conversation with Takamiya. In order to clear his head-and hopefully sober him up from his thirst-he didn't even bother going back to his apartment. Instead, he decided to stalk about the grounds in the cold, wearing nothing more than his uniform. He hadn't even noticed the snow flurrying around him, too angry to really pay attention to anything.

"Who does he think he is?" he growled, his hands balling up into fists in his pockets.

That was when the sound of quiet sniffles reached his ears. He turned towards the sound, almost missing the outline of a person kneeling on the ground. He could tell from the size that it was a girl, but as to who it was, he had no clue. He did, however, know they were an idiot for being out here.

Prefect instincts kicking in, he approached them, entirely ready to scold them until they ran back inside, until they raised their head up and he could see the back of her short, light brown hair.

"Wakaba?" He picked up his pace, stopping just behind the shivering, sniffling girl. "Hey, Wakaba, what did I tell you yesterday? You'll get sick out...here...," he trailed off on the last few words when she looked up at him, unbidden tears streaming down her pale face.

Completely ignoring him, she looked back down at the ground, hugging her arms tight around her knees and resting her forehead against them.

"What's wrong?" he knelt beside her, hand hovering over her shoulder, debating whether or not to touch her. Finally deciding it couldn't hurt, he reached over her, taking her in his hold until she was pressed lightly against his side. He could feel her shivers, causing his arm to tremble, and hear her muffled cries. "Sayori?"

"She was my best friend, too."

Any normal person would have had no hope of hearing her whispered words, but he was far from normal, and heard her as easily had she yelled in his ear. He removed his hand from her shoulder and placed it on the side of her head, pulling her over until it rested on his shoulder and patted her hair lightly.

"I know."

He kept her company as she cried, and, on the inside, he cried a little, too. However, whether it was for the lose of the one he held dear in his heart, or the girl beside him, who had become a regular part of his life, he didn't know.

After all, the second day was only _slightly_ easier.

* * *

Done! Phew, that one wore me out! But, I love writing this, and it's so much more fun than doing my semester work :p

So, there's chapter 2. And now we know Zero's not an emotionless zombie (just an emotionless vampire) WOOHOO! \(^_^)/ Also, I find **flabbergasted **to be a very funny word. It was still kinda slow, but I promise it won't remain at a stalemate. There's lots of action, drama, angst, suspense (and romance) to be revealed.

Thank you to my reviewers', Lakemet, Anonymous (you know who are you), and HYPERASSGIRL (your name. Love it.) Your reviews made me smile :) And, HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU, TOO (even though I'm a day late. Let's pretend I'm not.)

Until Chapter 3!

-IdleScribe

*P.S. I learned that Naomi is actually a Japanese name. Never knew that. I'm **flabbergasted!**


	4. His Only Princess, Chapter 3

His Only Princess: Chapter 3

* * *

The night had not been kind to him.

After he'd spent a fair amount of time out in the cold, give or take a few hours, he made it to bed. The image of Yori crying was on repeat in his head, and it cloaked him in a sense of guilt. He had been so wrapped up in his own despair that he'd failed to notice the toll everything had taken on the others. He was also a little concerned for Yori, seeing as how he had never seen her express an emotion other than her usual caring self.

Yes, he had been with her longer, and he was rather certain he held an immeasurable amount of feelings for her, but she had also had attachments with others than him; Yori being the prime example.

He had made sure the grief-stricken girl made it back to her room safely, cradling her bridal style so as not to wake her-he really didn't even know when she had finally relaxed and fell asleep-and trying to keep some sort of warmth near her.

Zero's muscles ached, and he stretched his long arms above him, trying to relieve some of the knots, but it did no good. He took his next best option, and went to the washroom. Turning on the shower water as hot as it could get, the room quickly filled with humid steam. He stripped himself of his wrinkled, cold uniform-he hadn't even bothered changing out of it when he got in last night-and stepped in, sliding the glass door behind him. The water scalded his skin, leaving angry red marks down his arms and back, but the pain that came with that distracted him from the ache in his body and chest. Good things couldn't last forever though, and soon the water ran cold, forcing the temperamental teen out of the shower. Dressed in only his black dress pants with a towel hanging around his neck, he went rummaging about for another uniform shirt. Water dripped from his hair, falling against his neck and trailing down his bare skin. Finding the item of his pursuit, he merely threw the article of clothing on his bed and sank down in a chair, his lean form hunched over, hands covering his face. A ragged sigh passed through his lips, and he shut his eyes, willing reality to blend together with his dreams. The doorbell rang and reality came crashing back down around him. Not caring about his lack of being fully dressed, he threw the door open, just as the person on the other side was about to ring the bell again.

"Oh, my." Chairman Cross pushed Zero back into his apartment, trying to keep roaming eyes off of his scantly clad body. "Why are you so under dressed?" Zero only scowled, as though it should have been the most obvious thing. The man took notice of the towel still hanging around his shoulders, and nodded, patting at it affectionately. Zero resisted backing away from the man who had been his legal guardian for the largest part of his life and crossed his arms over his chest.

"What do you want?"

"I have something for you, Zero-kun. Here," he thrust a small metal container towards him, the contents inside rattling against the sides. Zero took it from him and flipped the lid open with his index finger, scooting the little white pills around and, grimacing, shut it once more and placed it back in the Chairman's hand.

"I don't need them."

"But, you told me you were out of them...," Chairman Cross was confused. He knew for a fact that Zero had mentioned being out of blood tablets the other day, and surely he wasn't...feeding.

"I am. But, I don't need them."

"Why not? Surely you're not-," another scowl was given as an answer before he could even finish his sentence. "Zero, you can't starve yourself like this. They might not be as great as the...real thing," he cleared his throat, placing the tablet box down on the dresser, "but they're better than nothing."

"They certainly weren't better than nothing when I was on my way to Level E."

Chairman Cross shivered at Zero's words. The young vampire had been so close to losing all sense of his humanity to his bloodlust, finally being saved by the one man that took his daughter from him. Kaname Kuran. He supposed though that he should be thankful for him saving his life, because he didn't know what he would've done if he'd lost both of his children. Placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, he finally coaxed Zero around to face him.

"That's the past now, Zero. You're not the same person you were then. Please, just use the tablets. I hate seeing you let yourself suffer so much." He left with those words.

Zero ran a hand through his almost dry hair, taking deep breaths as thoughts of his past threatened to overcome him. He knew that Chairman Cross was right. What good would it do anybody for him to starve? It didn't help the burn in his throat, and it certainly didn't help the safety of the humans he encountered on a daily basis.

_"I know you're up to something though...You wouldn't hang around Wakaba so much if you weren't. What is it? Does she remind you of your little princess?"_

"No." He stopped that train of thought before it even began. It was only natural that he and Yori would've ended up bonding a little more. They had been a friend of a friend, and with the middleman gone, the two opposite sides would attract towards each other. But, they weren't even that close. Not even a year of it just being them had proved in anything close to resembling a friendship. They were more like acquaintances. And besides, it seemed now as though Yori had that Naomi girl to hang around with.

_"Hi! I'm Matsuki Naomi!"_

Naomi Matsuki. A part of him didn't like her, and he didn't even know her. But, he just brushed it off as being wary to any new person coming into the Academy after all that had taken place. Forgetting all prior thoughts of them, he began dressing for the day, ensuring he made himself choke down one of the vile tablets before leaving for school.

* * *

Yori wasn't entirely too sure what had happened, but she did know she looked a mess. As she examined herself in the mirror, she saw her usually slightly waved hair now hung limp, save for the few odd pieces sticking up at random angles. She fought hard with her brush and hands to tame them, but to no avail. The rebellious pieces only teased her. The formings of dark shadows was just visible under her wide eyes, and they weren't the same bright color they always were. Now, they were red and puffy, making her look as though she had cried all night.

Well, she did, basically. But, she didn't want everyone else to know that.

Her memories were fuzzy after a certain point from last night. She remembered crouching on the ground, and Zero finding her there, but after that, it was all a blur. And she certainly could not figure out how she got back to her room, unless...

She gasped, face flushing red from embarrassment. Surely he didn't! But, that was the only explanation as to how things happened.

"I'm so stupid," she groaned, shame rising at the thought of making him go out of his way like that.

"You're not stupid, Sayori-san."

She looked in the mirror again and saw Naomi standing behind her, smiling and already dressed. Compared to Yori, she looked perfect.

She took a few steps towards her until she was right behind the shorter girl.

"You're very smart, actually. Without you, I never would have finished my homework last night!"

Yori waved her hand in denial.

"You don't give yourself enough credit, Naomi-san. You're very smart, too."

Naomi practically shined at the compliment.

"Thank you, Sayori-san!" she turned around, ready to grab her bag, when she straightened up as though she had forgotten something. "Oh, do you want some help with your hair?" Yori raised her eyebrows in question. "I noticed your battle with it earlier, and it seemed to be winning. I could show you some different hairstyles that will make it stay down for the entire day, if you'd like."

Nodding her head, she sat on her bed while Naomi went after her astray hair with a comb and careful fingers.

* * *

"Naomi-san, you're a lifesaver!"

"Well, I don't know about that. But, definitely a hair saver."

The two girls giggled as they walked to their history class together. Yori would occasionally reach up to touch the two little braids Naomi had somehow managed to get her hair to go into, pinning them both together neatly at the back of her head. The rest of her hair still hung loose, the edges flirting with her cheeks and chin.

"Quit messing with them! You'll mess them up," Naomi berated her teasingly and pulled her hand away from her hair.

"Okay, I'll stop bothering them," Yori laughed.

"Hey, look. It's that mean guy from yesterday." Naomi pointed in front of them, and Yori followed her finger, eyes landing on a disgruntled looking Zero leaning up against the wall. Immediately, a warm blush took over her face, and she bowed her head to avoid him seeing. "Sayori-san, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I, uh, think I might be coming down with something," she tried to sound reassuring, but Naomi didn't buy it. The taller girl stopped her and placed the back of her hand against her forehead, measuring for any slight change in temperature degree.

"You do feel a little warm. Would you like to go to the nurse?"

"No, no!" Yori shouted, jerking backwards. Her outburst caught Zero's attention and left Naomi standing there, watching her like she was a wounded animal. "I mean, don't worry about me. Really. I'll be fine." She continued walking towards her class, silently asking for Naomi to follow, which she did. However, it seemed as though someone had different plans for her once she reached the doorway.

"Wakaba."

Yori froze, her hand just barely an inch from the doorknob. She refused to let herself look at him, inwardly yelling at herself for not paying attention to how close he was to the classroom.

Zero pushed himself away from the wall, arms crossed. He had abandoned his uniform blazer, replacing it with a dark gray jacket that had buckles going down it. His pale lavender eyes traveled over to the girl next to her, and they narrowed a bit, before locking with Yori's again.

"Can I talk to you for a moment?"

Naomi, sensing his hostility towards her presence, stepped away from Yori and closer to the door.

"Go ahead, Sayori-san. If you happen to be late, I'll tell the teacher you're not feeling well, okay?"

"Oh, thank you, Naomi-san," Yori offered her a grateful smile, which she returned before walking into the classroom. She turned back towards Zero, only to find that he wasn't standing there anymore, but already halfway down the hall. Figuring he wanted her to follow him, she sneaked past the open door and hurried after him.

* * *

He stopped walking once he reached the horse stables. White Lily neighed in delight when she saw him, pounding her hooves against the ground.

"It's good to see you, too, girl," he reached over and ran his hand down her mane, causing her to huff with pleasure. He finally heard Yori panting behind him, and turned to see her with her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath.

"Don't...walk so...fast," she complained between pants. Her braids had come loose while she ran, the pins long gone, leaving the little hairs free to do as they pleased. Zero had to bite back a laugh at how ruffled she looked.

"Maybe you're just out of shape."

She raised her head to glare at him, eyes narrowed.

"What did you want, anyways?" She didn't mean to sound rude, but he had made her chase after him all the way to the horse stables, _and_ he was going to make her late for class. So, maybe she did mean to.

He took a deep breath. It was now or never.

"Is everything alright?" He was never the one to concern himself with other people's well-being. They were what they were, and he accepted it as is. But since he couldn't seem to shake the scene from last night out of his head, he decided maybe asking her would help alleviate some of the guilt he was feeling.

His question threw Yori for a loop. She may not have known him that well, but she did know he never bothered with others feelings, unless it was Yuuki's. She mindlessly began playing with her fingers and averted her eyes from him.

"Of course everything's alright. Last night was a mistake." That's what it was. She had never intended for anyone to see her in that state.

"A mistake?" His condescending tone proved he didn't believe her. "Crying isn't a mistake a person can make."

"Well, there's a first for everything." Heat crept up her neck, and she wished she could curl up in a ball and disappear. Really, this whole situation was humiliating.

Zero could hear her heartbeat pick up in speed, causing blood to rush to her neck and cheeks, flushing her face red. The wind blowing around them captured her scent, forcing it in his face. She smelled like amber and roses. The burn in his throat doubled in pain, the tablet he had taken this morning seeming to have done nothing for his hunger. Not whenever this wonderful smelling person was right in front of him...

He bit down on his tongue, drawing his own blood, repulsed by his thoughts. He still loathed what he was, and the fact that he was having such thoughts about the girl before him made him sick. Yori still refused to look at him, which was incredible luck. Maybe there was some God helping him out. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he barely heard the end of her sentence.

"...won't happen again. I'm sorry." She bowed quickly and sped off in the direction of the Academy, never once glancing behind her.

Zero felt frozen, as though all of his muscles had locked in place, but his mind was reeling. The words that Takamiya and Cross had said to him, all those blood tablets in his dresser. And the way she smelled. He fell to ground and slammed his head against White Lily's stable door, causing a ruckus amongst the horses. He knew he'd regret doing that later, already feeling the pounding at the back of his head. Curling one of his legs up towards his chest, he propped his elbow up on his knee and pressed his forehead against his palm, fingers gripping tightly in his hair. White Lily lowered her head, nuzzling the top of his softly, before...

"You weirdo," Zero deadpanned, trying to shake her off while she chewed on his hair. "I'll be bald if you keep this up."

White Lily neighed, almost as though she was laughing at his expense.

He thought for a moment, after he got the horse to relinquish his hair, and came up with two options: he could continue coming to class, encountering everybody, and ultimately putting their lives' in danger, or, he could lock himself up in his apartment and feed off of tablets for the next few hundred years.

Personally, he liked the second option, but he knew Chairman Cross would not stand for him dropping out of high school. But, that man had no clue the extent Zero's hunger went to. It revolted him, made him want to put an end himself on multiple occasions, but he'd tried that before, only to have a hysterical Yuuki finally stop him. Not that he planned on trying it again; he had a job to do, now. Takamiya, Cross, Yagari and he himself had to keep their eyes on the vampires at all times when they were in the company of humans. It was almost as though they'd become security at the Nobles' and Purebloods' little get togethers, watching for any slip up that would give them permission to attack. It was what they waited for, every time.

* * *

The teacher wasn't angry at her when she burst into the room. Naomi must have told her she wasn't feeling well, and the fact that her face was probably beet red backed up the claim nicely. Yori took her seat, which was right in front of Naomi, feeling a bit lightheaded.

"Good to see you made it back, Sayori-san," Naomi whispered. Yori nodded and went to pull out her notebook, hand trembling.

"Class, who can tell me what events led to the first World War?"

Yori's vision began to blur, and suddenly she felt like she was suffocating from the heat. She desperately waved her hands in front of her face, trying to relieve herself, but it did no good.

"Sayori-san?"

The teacher looked up at the students, focusing on Yori. "Yes, Wakaba?"

Yori shook her head, or at least she thought she did, wanting to get rid of the wave of nausea that had swept over her.

"Wakaba, are you alright?"

Her breaths became labored, and she began to panic, the heat on her body escalating.

"Yori-chan!"

Everything went black.

* * *

Ahhh! *headslam* I don't really like this. But, sick Yori=caring Zero? (hmm, I guess we'll have to see.) I'm eventually going to go insane from writing such long chapters; re-reading them afterwards to make sure I made no mistakes becomes so difficult.

I'll be honest, I blushed the entire way through writing Zero's beginning part =*_*= He's just way too attractive (darn you, Matsuri Hino.)

Zero's struggling with his bloodlust, it seems, even though he's not on his way to becoming a Level E. So, what do you all think could be his problem?

Also, since my little poll friend isn't working, I have another question for you all, relating to this story:

**What would you prefer to see Zero call Yori?**

**a)** Yori

**b)** Sayori

**c)** His own shortening of her name (if this, what could it be?)

A thanks is in order for my three little lovelies again; my reviewers'!

Lakemet: You'll be getting a ton of thanks from me :D So, you're welcome! But, I didn't know I'd make you cry! D: I'm so glad you love my story, and I'll work extra hard on all the future chapters to make sure you and everyone else loves them, too. じゃあね (ja ne...;))

HYPERASSGIRL: I'm glad you love! I hope you love this one just as much! ^_^

Anon: Thank you :D I'm trying to keep things slow between them, but not so slow that it'll drag out for 45068378259 chapters xD

And to all the rest of you readers', thank you, too! You just make my day by actually reading my story :)

Until Chapter 4!

-IdleScribe


	5. His Only Princess, Chapter 4

His Only Princess: Chapter 4

* * *

The first thing that he noticed when he walked in was all the white. A white bed backed up into a corner, covered in several thick, white blankets with a very pale girl tucked snug underneath them. Her eyes were closed, face relaxed, and wild hair surrounding her head like a golden brown halo. She was the epitome of innocence, and resembled an angel.

"Poor little thing. The high fever caused her to pass out."

Cross Academy's nurse, a friendly looking and stout woman with rosy cheeks, replaced the cloth on her forehead, watching her with sad eyes.

"How long will she be like this?"

His eyes flickered over to the person who spoke; Chairman Cross. He hadn't even seen the man standing there, completely quiet with his hands folded in front of him. Without his boisterous attitude, he blended in to the background very well.

"I can't really say, Headmaster," she pulled a thermometer out of her pocket and forced it into Yori's tightly closed mouth. When she pulled it back out, she shook her head. "She could easily stay in this state until this fever goes down."

Chairman Cross nodded, his lips drawn in a thin line, before he turned to face the young man hovering in the doorway.

"Come on in, Zero."

He'd been on his way to...somewhere, he wasn't too sure of his destination, when the history teacher ran out of her room, Yori in her arms. Naomi had been behind her, but he stopped her, not letting her leave until she told him what had happened. And that was how he ended up in the infirmary, watching a sick, now sterile smelling Yori, take shallow breaths while trying to fight a high fever. Slowly, he sauntered into the room, taking his spot by Chairman Cross. If not for his clothes, he would've faded in with the backdrop of the room easily, his hair just a few shades darker than the pristine white surrounding them, but the black made him stick out like a sore thumb.

"What's her temperature now?"

"It's about thirty-eight degrees*. Just keep an eye on her and soak the cloth in that basin of ice water when it warms up. And please, if she were to worsen, come get me." Both men nodded to her before she went to another part of the infirmary to check on another patient. They could barely hear her basic questions of their well-being despite them both standing stock still and silent.

Chairman Cross broke the ice with a well-thought out statement. "Well, I suppose it's in order that I contact her parents, just in case she were to worsen. Would you be alright watching her while I do so?" He eyed Zero warily, not too sure what to think of the way he looked.

Zero nodded, never taking his eyes off of the girl's sleeping form. The older man sighed quietly and reached into his pocket, taking hold of Zero's own hand and pressing some small items in it.

"Chairman, I've been-,"

"It's for a 'just in case'," he smiled warmly and backed out of the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

A pregnant silence filled the room, and honestly, he didn't really know whether he trusted himself or not. They had completely sterilized her and the room, leaving behind a very pungent smell, but just under it was her scent. His hands and teeth clenched, a tactic he had so recently acquired, trying to quell the despicable urge. A simple wooden chair had been placed by her bed, so he took his place in it, having become her designated guardian for the time being. The devil watching an angel. He derided the thought. Reaching a hand out, he felt of the cloth laying against her face. It had very rapidly become warm-the nurse had just soaked it a few moments ago-so he removed it from her hot skin, replacing it with his hand. Unconsciously, the girl turned towards the new source of relief, nudging against his palm to press it closer to her. He felt a slight sense of discomfort at her easiness of being so near him, even in her fever-induced sleep, and he considered backing away from her, lifting his hand up briefly in indecision. But then she began to stir, tossing her head from agitation when her hair fell against her forehead, aggravating her skin, and from the uncomfortable heat that came in the absence of his hand. Slowly, her blurry eyes cracked open, but quickly screwed shut once more when they were met with the bright light above her.

A few minutes passed, and when she didn't open her eyes again, Zero figured the fever must have stolen her consciousness again, so he hesitantly laid his hand against her forehead once more, marveling at the way she moved towards it again. He noticed she felt the slightest bit hotter, but didn't think much of it, instead busying himself with moving the hair sticking against her clammy neck away with his other hand. She rasped out a sigh in her sleep, her warm breath feathering over his fingers, sending a chill up his spine. Her pale lips were parted, and her breath rattled and whistled, hinting that she was congested.

"Idiot," Zero whispered, brushing her bangs back gently. "I told you you would get sick."

* * *

An hour passed, and still there was no change in Yori's condition. In fact, she had seemingly gotten worse, her breath coming in short, shallow gasps that made her frail chest heave. Zero had tried to find the nurse, but he had no such luck, and he couldn't just leave her here by herself to go on a wild hunt for the spastic woman.

"How is she?"

He almost jumped at the sound of her voice, almost, but then he wanted to throttle her. Where had she been?!

"Worse," he stated simply, backing away from her wisely as the nurse barreled towards the girl's vulnerable figure, thermometer already in hand.

"Oh dear," she muttered, and before he could ask what was wrong, she rushed out of the room, running down the hall and shouting for Chairman Cross to come quickly. He stood there, stuck between going back to her side and going after the nurse, when she reappeared with Chairman Cross at her heels. He didn't acknowledge Zero still being there-or the fact that the girl did not, in fact, have any bite marks on her neck-wouldn't he be proud?-and fluttered worriedly over Yori.

"I called her father, but he was in a very important meeting and said he couldn't take the call." His words disgusted Zero. Her own father considered his work more important than his daughter's health, which was seemingly deteriorating fast. "What can we do?"

"We don't have any other option than taking her to the hospital. Parental permission or not, she needs medical assistance," the nurse was already tugging at Yori's arms, trying to get her up in a sitting position, but she groaned from being moved and began to thrash in her grip. "Come on, dear, you need to sit up."

"Let me handle her."

The two adults stopped their frantic movements and turned to face Zero, astounded looks on their faces'. He payed them no mind though and moved to her bedside, removed the nurse's hands from her, and wrapped a hand around her arm to hold her up long enough to situate her upper half against one of his arms, the other arm holding behind her knees. Her entire body was scorching hot, and she was fitful, trying to fight against being moved, but at the same time relieved by his slightly colder body temperature. Not even waiting for the others, he walked out of the room.

Chairman Cross was stupefied. He had _never _seen Zero show any care towards another, always remaining closed off and distant. And ever since a year ago, even more so. He had handled the ill girl with such care, though. Storing his questioning thoughts in a little corner to ask him later, he and the nurse hurriedly followed after him.

* * *

Doctors rushed in and out of rooms while patients clung to their IV poles, stumbling down the halls. Zero clung to Yori for dear life when one of them would get a little too close to her, not wanting her to contract whatever it may be that they had.

Chairman Cross waited semi-patiently for a nurse at the help desk, but when one never showed, he banged loudly on it, demanding someone help them this instant. A skittish looking woman of about twenty appeared, her eyes almost as wide as the round glasses perched on her nose with fright.

"May I-I help you, s-sir?" Her voice was shaky, as well as her whole being.

"We've got a very sick girl here!" he motioned behind him like a madman, and the nurse began to calm down as she approached Zero and Yori. Zero's grip on her tightened a fraction as she felt of her forehead and pulse.

"Are you her husband?" It was an innocent question directed towards him, only because of course she didn't know any better, but it made Zero falter.

"No, no, no," Chairman Cross supplied hastily in place of Zero's lost voice, causing the nurse to turn back towards him. "She's just a student. She's not married."

"Then, are you her father?"

The man seemed to deflate at the mention of being someone's father, but he kept himself together, knowing they were dealing with a very pressing matter.

"No, I am not. We tried to contact her father, but he was tied up. I am the Headmaster of Cross Academy, the school she attends. So, as of now, I am her guardian." He tapped his fingers against his forearm impatiently while the nurse pulled up some paperwork.

"What's her name?"

"Wakaba Sayori."

"Alright, and do you know how old she is?"

"Seventeen. She just turned seventeen last month."

The nurse shuffled through some more papers, all while nodding her head, finally pulling out what she needed. Instead of speaking to them again, she rushed off in the direction they had seen several doctors going, coming back with an elder looking gentleman who had graying hair and a stern face.

"What's the condition?"

"High fever, difficult pinpointing pulse, and difficulty breathing, Dr. Tsukishima."

The man, Dr. Tsukishima, approached Zero and ripped Yori out of his arms. She moaned and turned her head against him, nuzzling his starchy white coat. When Chairman Cross attempted to follow him, he halted him in his tracks.

"I need you all to wait out here. We'll run a few tests on her, and when we've got something figured out, we'll let you know." He gave them that ultimatum, which brooked no room for argument, and took Yori through a set of double doors.

"Well, I suppose that's all we can do, now. Wait," Chairman Cross took a seat in one of the plastic chairs lined along the wall, crossing his legs and thrumming his fingers along his calf.

"I'd best be getting back to the school, Headmaster." The nurse bowed respectfully as he nodded to her and took her leave so she could tend to the less ill students at the Academy. They didn't stay in silence, for there was too much beeping and wailing going on to make that statement. But they themselves didn't speak a word, one watching the doors while the other watched him in a curious silence.

It was a while before he spoke up. "Zero-kun?" Zero arched an eyebrow, refusing to look anywhere else besides those doors. "You're...acting different."

He suppressed a groan. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, the way you treated Yori-chan just then. I've never seen you act that way."

"She's sick."

"I know, but still. It almost seems to me as though she's breaking you out of your old habits." He didn't mean any harm by his observation at all, but the young man took it in a completely different context.

"Look, I don't know what delusional ideas run through your and Takamiya's head, but I suggest you put an end to them. There's nothing going on with me and that girl, so why don't you all do yourselves and me a favor and stop this now." He stormed out of the hospital just as Dr. Tsukishima reappeared.

"Headmaster Cross, we have ran a few vital sign tests on her, as well as some blood work. We're still waiting for those results, but right now, it's looking as though she may have a rather severe case of pneumonia."

* * *

He could never seem to catch a break. First, Takamiya had come at him with absurd accusations, and now even Chairman Cross had seemed to join the fiendish game. It was almost as though they gained pleasure from trying to make him squirm. He refused to give them that satisfaction though, remaining cold and aloof.

"Ah, Kiryuu?"

Zero wished he had never even come outside when he heard that provoking, lilting voice.

"What are you doing here, Kaito?"

An impish grin spread on the young teacher's face.

"I heard about Wakaba fainting in class. I went to go check up on her, but the nurse told me she had been brought here. How is she doing?" He was mocking Zero, attempting to push him over the edge. Getting the stoic hunter all riled up was the only form of entertainment he had nowadays.

"That's none of your business. Besides, isn't it a little inappropriate for a male teacher to come check up on one of his female students?"

Takamiya seemed to think his words over, but then shook his head, chuckling. He punched Zero's shoulder in a friendly manner and walked through the entrance doors.

"Oh Zero. Sometimes you can be so naive."

Ready with a rebuttal, an agonizing scream ripped through the air, stopping his non-existent side of the argument and sending the expert hunter sprinting down the streets. All thoughts of Takamiya and the sick girl abandoned, he combed through every alleyway quickly and efficiently, coming up empty handed until he at last spotted his target. Unsheathing his Bloody Rose from the inside of his jacket, he cocked the gun, aiming it at the back of the things head. It turned its head to the side, giving him a glimpse of its gruesome face and burning red eyes.

"Back off," Zero threatened lowly, noticing the trembling girl pinned to the wall beneath the beast, pushing the barrel closer to its head. It finally turned to face him, and he determined the person, the man it once was couldn't have been much older than himself, but the crazed look in his eyes showed he had lost the battle to his bloodlust a long time ago. He was nothing more than a savage bloodsucker now. Not even hesitating, Zero knocked the Level E to the ground, held the Bloody Rose to its forehead and pulled the trigger, watching as it dissolved to ashes before him.

"Are you...," he trailed off when he turned his head to check on the girl who had almost become its victim, finding that she was no longer there, having fled when it was distracted. He tilted his head back, silvery fringe falling over his closed eyes, chilled at the images that flashed behind his eyelids, thinking of how _close_ he had been, and he pinched the bridge of his nose to try and ward off the headache stabbing beneath the surface, when he remembered something.

He had stormed out of the hospital before they heard anything. He had left her there with Takamiya, a man who seemed to have an unhealthy interest in her, in close proximity. But, if he were to show back up, would that only make him and Chairman Cross even more curious, give them the go-ahead to continue questioning him about their absurd conclusions?

It didn't help that he also blamed himself for Yori falling ill. He hadn't forced her to stay outside, but he could have been more forceful in trying to get her to go back inside. She wasn't an illness-resistant vampire like him, and was way more susceptible to the cold than he ever would have been.

"Damn it," he cursed and stormed off back to the hospital, concealing his gun back inside of his jacket, and convincing himself all the while that he just refused to leave her in the care of Kaito Takamiya.

* * *

"Sir, you can't-sir! You can't go in there!"

Ignoring the meek nurse's order, he pulled the door to Yori's room open, calculating eyes scanning for any sign of the two nuisances. They were no where to be found. The nurse mumbled something incoherent and stomped off somewhere when he yanked the door closed. He hooked the leg of a nearby chair with his foot and dragged it over to the side of her bed, sitting on the edge and crossing his lanky legs. He looked over her sleeping figure slowly. She rested peacefully, no longer tossing in agitation, supposedly under the effects of sedatives to tame her fever. He took a deep breath with intention of exhaling, until he caught a whiff of something permeating the area directly around Yori. He stood up, the chair knocking over with his abrupt movements, and leaned as close to her as he dared without touching her. His spine straightened when he found where the scent was exactly. It was strongest near her face and neck, but it also spread scarcely over her arms and torso. He gingerly lifted her hand and brought it closer to him, noticing the smell was concentrated heavily there as well.

It wasn't so much where the smell was on her that made him go rigid, but what it belonged to. Or rather who. Kaito Takamiya. That man's scent was _all over_ her.

* * *

Dun, dun, dun! Okay you all, I intended for this to be up yesterday, and this isn't the most exciting one (except Zero being all kick-ass), but my third semester also started yesterday, so I was buried knee-deep in coursework -_-" I'm sorry! I'll have the next two chapters up this weekend, though.

Thank you to my incredible, incredible reviewers', HYPERASSGIRL, Anon, Lakemet, and AHeartFullmetal (thank you so much for that amazing review! It really made my day. I'm glad I could bring you to the Zori side xD I hope this chapter has still managed to keep you interested) and thanks to all my readers' as well! Just seeing your all's reactions to the story makes me happy, and keeps my motivation up.

I received two answers to the question from last chapter's A/N so far, but we're still a little while away from it taking effect, so it's not too late to give **_your_** answer! :)

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Prepare yourselves for some unexpected twists to come.

Until Chapter 5!

-IdleScribe

& for those of you wondering, 38 degrees C is about 101 degrees F.


	6. His Only Princess, Chapter 5

His Only Princess: Chapter 5

* * *

Her condition worsened overnight. The nurses had bathed her soon after Zero was, more or less, forcibly removed from her room, redressing her in a soft cotton sleep set, taking her damp uniform to be cleaned. Her tangled hair had been brushed out, no longer resembling a bird's nest. Dr. Tsukishima had been in on a few occasions as the night progressed, checking her vitals and reviewing the reports ran by the nurses. Her fever spiked around midnight, sending them all in a flurry, trying to lower the raging heat storm within her. She had yet to awaken, but thankfully for her, breathing had seemed to become a little easier.

The next morning brought little change. A tad bit of color had returned to her, a lovely peach spreading along her cheeks and nose, and her eyes would flutter when something would touch her, but she still had a high fever.

Once visiting hours rolled around, Zero was the first to show up to see her, to no one's surprise. It was the weekend, so he no longer donned his normal attire, replacing his uniform with dark slacks, a white sweater and a long, white trench coat. His boots clicked softly against the tiled floor of the hospital room, and he took his spot from yesterday, right beside her bed. The first thing he noticed was that she wasn't as messy as she had been yesterday, and that that horrid smell had worn off tremendously, her rosy scent being the dominant one, now.

He had swallowed down half the container of the bitter tablets before leaving his apartment to help.

The curtains of the small window were drawn back, allowing the warm morning sunlight to stream in, casting a gentle gold light across her face. He watched her as she slept, breathing softly through her mouth, and cautiously allowed his fingers to inch closer to her hand. Once his fingertips brushed against her skin, she shifted, causing him to pull his hand back. Thoughts of Takamiya's scent being on her invaded his state of mind, and he begrudgingly wondered if she moved when he touched her.

"Whatever," he growled and crossed his arms, resolute in not coming into contact with her any longer. He was only there on obligation, anyways; that, plus, Chairman Cross was unbelievably swamped with paperwork, both for the school and Association. So, that left only him to really come and check up on her. Him, and that Naomi girl, but he hadn't seen her anywhere near here.

"Sayori-san, are you aw-oh. Hello, Kiryuu-san."

He thought too soon. Lifting his hand, he motioned the girl in with two fingers, not bothering to speak to her. He could hear her nervous heartbeat as she walked in, but it didn't seem to affect him whatsoever. He thought nothing of it, though. She entered his line of vision, oddly dressed in her school uniform, with a large bouquet of white roses in her hands. Placing them on Yori's bedside table, she nodded in approval before facing him and noticing him eyeing her attire curiously. A deep blush spread across her cheeks.

"I forgot to change last night. I was so worried about Sayori-san," she glanced down at Yori. "And I couldn't change this morning, either. Chairman Cross asked me early if I could bring this to her. It was delivered to the Academy for her this morning." He'd learned that he would always hear about things useless to him from this girl the second he actually met her, so he just nodded and lowered his chin to chest, signaling he no longer wished to be spoken to. "I'm just going to stay here for a little while."

"I wouldn't if I were you." Those were the first civil words Zero had spoken towards Naomi, but he didn't look at her. He took microscopic baby steps when dealing with someone new.

"Why not?" she sounded offended, and he could just picture the way her face looked at that moment. He uncrossed his arms and motioned to Yori.

"Supposedly, she's contagious," his gaze flickered up to her face. Baby steps. "You wouldn't want to end up in here like her, would you?"

Naomi stared at him, perplexed.

"But, you're staying here with her," she pointed out, her voice rising a little from her clear frustration with him. "If she's so contagious, then shouldn't you not be with her, either?" She was quite the perceptive one, much like Yori, but she did it in a way that made her seem like she knew it all. Which irked him to no end.

"I've been around her for two days, and nothing's wrong with me. I'm certain if I was going to get sick, I would've by now," he lied smoothly.

"I was in class with her, and I'm still perfectly healthy!" Naomi refused to back down, stomping her foot in defiance. By now, she was yelling. Yori moaned in discontent from her loud voice.

"I think it's best that you leave, Matsuki." Civil manners tossed to the side, Zero clutched his hand around the guard railing of Yori's bed, ready to keep Naomi away from her.

The brunette haired girl huffed, her feathers ruffled, and turned on her heel, stomping out of the room.

"Just because you're in love with her doesn't mean you can keep her all to yourself!" she yelled at him and slammed the door shut.

* * *

Naomi pressed her back against the wall, breathing heavily. He had pulled at her nerves to no end; he _deserved_ to be yelled at! But then she thought through their short-lived conversation, and stifled a gasp when it registered with her what her last words were to him.

_"Just because you're in love with her doesn't mean you can keep her all to yourself!"_

Given, Yori had never spoken of whatever kind of relationship it was that was transpiring between her and Zero, and didn't ever bring it up, so Naomi thought little of it. At least, on her side. But, the few times she had seen Zero around her made her curious. He was always readily holding on to her, or wanting to speak to her, or even just staring at her. Like the other day, when they saw him outside of their classroom. He had hardly even acknowledged her existence, his eyes trained only on Yori. It was obvious that she would have come up with that conclusion, that the mean-spirited guy was in love with her friend. Keeping her proclamation steadfast in her head, she left the hospital.

* * *

To say he was shocked was an understatement. Naomi's words left him in a state of awe, dread seeping through his bones as he mentally added another person to the list of "enemies." Just how many people would come up with that ludicrous idea?! While he wasn't the most emotional person, he had always kept those he cared for close. And, up until a year ago, he had only had one friend; Yuuki. And since she was gone, Yori had been _her_ best friend, making her almost seem like a replacement to her. But if he thought that, he considered himself cruel. Yori had been nothing but kind towards him, obviously not wanting to pour her pity on him, instead branching out from her comfort zone and offering him something everyone could use at the moment. Friendship. So no, he did not see her as a replacement. Just not so much a close friend as Yuuki had been yet.

"You're making my life so difficult," he chided her playfully, rising and ruffling her hair, going to look at her present. It was a simple bouquet, tied neatly with a velvet pink ribbon. He plucked a petal from one of the smaller roses and held it between his thumb and forefinger. It was soft, as most all rose petals were, and the color suited her well. Soft, white, simple, pure. So much like her.

A square object underneath the bouquet finally caught his attention, and he pulled it out, turning it over. It was an envelope with Yori's full name signed on it in elegant cursive. He sat it back down, still occupying himself with the petal, and was going to go back to his seat when a thought came to him. Glancing at her, he watched as her chest rose and fell, features still with deep sleep.

"Well, you won't be up for a while," he cleverly excused his actions as he slipped a finger under the seal of the envelope and pulled out the small paper. Whoever wrote it obviously didn't have much to say to her, because the paper was no bigger than an index card. Moving over to the window, he held the sheet in the light directly, scanning over it, finally finding the signature.

_Father. _

So, it was a letter from her father. Thoroughly interested in what he had to say to her since he couldn't even come visit her while she was sick, he began to read the letter.

_[Sayori,_

_I received word from the Academy that you are ill. I am sorry I could not come to visit you, but you know how busy things can get. Please, get better soon. Here are your favorite flowers to brighten your days. I hope you are staying focused on your studies, and not letting any of those crazy dreams of yours get to your head. Also, do not be fooling around with any of those boys' at school. Remember, you _are_ an engaged woman.]_

Zero balked at those words. Not able to think them over properly, he went on to read the end of the letter.

_[Which reminds me, your big day is fast approaching. I meant to tell you this sooner, but your fiancé will be presenting himself to you in a few days. I do believe he has already arrived. I know this is not traditional, but you do understand, don't you? I hope you approve of him. Good luck, my dear daughter. _

_Father]_

Engaged? Fiancé? He really couldn't believe the letter was the real deal. He had never heard her or Yuuki mention anything about her being engaged. And while he hadn't been the most interested in Yori's personal affairs before, he did know that Yuuki would have been bursting at the seams from excitement for her friend. But then, the letter also said he would be presenting himself to her in a few days, and that he hoped she approved of him. That meant it was an arranged marriage.

His limbs felt heavy and numb as he put the letter back in the envelope and under the roses once more. He didn't even pay attention to Yori as he vanished out of the room, completely missing her eyes beginning to flutter open.

* * *

"Takamiya!"

Takamiya looked up from the tests he was grading-really, he hadn't given these kids' that study session for _his_ benefit-when Zero forced the door shut behind him, advancing menacingly towards him. He tilted his head to the side and smiled a little.

"Can I help you, Zero? Oh, have you checked up on Wakaba today?"

Zero stopped right in front of his desk and slammed his hands down on it.

"I told you to stay away from her," he growled, lavender eyes flashing grey with danger.

Takamiya rose from his seat and placed a firm hand against Zero's chest, pushing him back.

"What a temper you have," he reproached. "You should really keep that in check. It makes you unpleasant," smirking, he added, "you'll never get a girlfriend that way."

It was a repeat of past events as his back met with the chalkboard, his shirt clutched tightly in Zero's white-knuckled hands.

"What was your scent doing on her?" He hadn't been able to unleash his anger until that moment, and he was giving all he had.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Zero pushed Takamiya against the board harder, his forearms pressed against his torso to pin him there.

"You know_ exactly_ what I'm talking about, Kaito. I could smell you all over Yori!" He was too enraged to notice his slip up, but it stunned Takamiya. He wiggled one of his hands to his pocket, pulling out a thin strip of metal.

"I'd watch it if I were you, Kiryuu," he tapped his shin with his foot, drawing his attention down to the object in his hand. A bracelet. "I am a vampire hunter, you know. And, despite your views on it, it doesn't change the fact that you're a vampire."

Zero deliberated for a moment longer before relinquishing his hold on the older hunter. Takamiya straightened his shirt and tie, pocketing his bracelet.

"So, it's Yori now? What happened to Wakaba?"

"Shut it, Takamiya."

"Really though, I'm curious. After all, you were the one who told me I was insane at thinking she was your girlfriend. You're quite the enigma. Unless," he took a seat once more and slung his arm over the back of the chair, amused by his leverage, "maybe I'm not. Maybe I just had the whole situation wrong. I think you've got unrequited feelings for the little angel. And, that's your problem." He grinned like a Cheshire cat who had just caught the canary when he finished.

"You have no idea how wrong you are," Zero snarled.

"Oh, am I? Then please enlighten me, Zero, because the way you're acting right now, anyone would think you're in love with her!"

That was the second time that someone had used the word love when referring to him and Yori. But, they were wrong. He placed his hand over his face, watching Takamiya through his fingers.

"Don't you know, Kaito? She's _engaged_. Off-limits to everyone, including you. So it'd be in your best interest to end whatever attraction you're harboring towards her. Unless you want her fiancé to beat you up," the words were acrid, but he'd say them just to keep him away from her. He believed he held the upper hand now. He had guessed that Takamiya had been at least a little attracted to her when he said he thought she was cute, and his scent covering her body yesterday proved him to be correct.

He made it halfway to the door when Takamiya spoke once more.

"Well, that does sound like it would hurt, but I honestly think that beating myself wouldn't be too easy. Actually, it would look quite comical," he tugged on his tie and pretended to punch himself in the face, chuckling quietly.

Zero's face went blank and paler than usual, eyes cold and void of all emotion.

"What are you talking about?" he spoke slowly, his stomach twisting in knots as his mind produced the one answer he absolutely did not want to hear.

Takamiya stayed silent for what felt like years. Then a victorious smile took hold of his mouth and he mentally applauded himself with a job well-done.

"Don't you see, Zero?_ I_ am Sayori Wakaba's fiancé."

* * *

"Oh, look who's awake!"

Chairman Cross raced over to the groggy girl, wrapping her in a tight bear hug.

"Don't ever scare me like that again, Yori-chan!" he wailed, tearing up. She winced slightly from the force of his hug, having just woken up a few hours ago. Her temperature had gone down a stupendous amount, now teetering between normal and barely a fever.

"I'm sorry, Chairman Cross. You must have been worried."

He nodded against her shoulder before holding her at arms length.

"You had us all worried, dear Yori-chan. You even had Zero-kun on edge."

That shocked her, but she was too disoriented to think on it a lot.

"I'm sorry," she apologized once more, wrapping her small hand around his larger one and smiling at him. He poked her nose and turned his head, catching sight of the roses on the table.

"Oh, right, right! These came for you today," he picked them up and thrust them in her shaky hands, the petals tickling her nose and making her sneeze.

"They're beautiful. Who're they from?" she sniffed the roses, smiling fondly at their sweet smell, before breaking out in a small coughing fit.

Chairman Cross patted her back soothingly and scratched his head.

"I don't know," he turned his head side to side, waving his hands around crazily when he spotted the envelope. "Here we go!" He picked it up and handed that to her as well, parking himself on the edge of her bed. He watched as she tried to pry the paper out of the envelope, but the tremors in her fingers made them too weak to manage. "Would you like me to?"

She nodded gratefully, her warm eyes shining with gratitude, and handed him the envelope.

"Alright. Let's see, what do we have here...okay. Sayori," he began to read aloud. At the same moment, another person entered the room. "Hm, I am sorry I could not come visit you...I hope you are staying focused...," he skimmed through it, only reading her bits of it, but she didn't mind. She was tired, her body still drained and sore from fighting such a powerful illness. She looked over towards the door, only to find Zero standing there, staring directly at her. He looked far away, as though he wasn't really there. "...you are an engaged woman. Which reminds me-hold up! Did that say engaged?!" Chairman Cross stuck his nose to the paper, reading over the words several times.

Yori's blood ran cold. No one knew about her engagement, not even Yuuki had, and she had meant for it to stay that way. Her wide eyes were glued to Zero, who seemed unaffected by the words. He just watched her, a cold fury flashing in his darkened eyes. Chairman Cross seemed to finally become aware of the silence and looked up from the letter, finding Zero for himself.

"Zero-kun! Did you know that Yori-chan is engaged?" he questioned, feeling stung from being left out.

Zero didn't answer him, his mind preoccupied with rampant thoughts, replaying several conversations at once.

_"Just because you're in love with her doesn't mean you can keep her all to yourself!"_

_"I think you've got unrequited feelings for the little angel."_

_"...the way you're acting right now, anyone would think you're in love with her!"_

_"Don't you see, Zero? _I _am Sayori Wakaba's fiancé." _

_Mrs. Sayori Takamiya_, he thought bitterly, watching while she turned stark white and stiff. _Like hell that'll happen. _

* * *

...

I don't even know what to say about this chapter. I didn't think too much through it beforehand and just started writing, so I hope it turned out okay. I really am not going to move these two fast, but I had to get it going_ somewhere_, at least. Trust me, I can get super mushy when writing quicky romances (which this obviously is not, hallelujah.)

I just realized I've never described what Takamiya looks like. Ever. Not once. Erm...yeah. About that ." He's attractive (but not as attractive as Zero .-.)

Thank you to my super awesome reviewers.

Anon: Um..surprise! Here's another twist ^_^" Naughty Kaito, I tell you.

HYPERASSGIRL5: I'm glad to see you got an account! I even checked out your story ;) Thank you! I hope this one lives up to last chapter.

Lakemet: Why thank you :) I hope this one fulfills your excitement!

Julianne: Really, I feel honored that you reviewed my story. I couldn't be happier that I've managed to re-spark your love for Zori (you're welcome) and thank you so much! This is me showing a ton of appreciation towards all of your wonderful comments without writing an entire chapter about it ^_^

so...TADA! Here you go! Thank you all for your incredible reviews! :D I would be able to write chapters about how much you all make my day with the things you say. And thank you to all of my readers' as well!

I hope you've enjoyed this fifth chapter.

Until Chapter 6!

-IdleScribe


	7. His Only Princess, Chapter 6

His Only Princess: Chapter 6

* * *

Dr. Tsukishima contacted Chairman Cross early the next morning, informing him they were releasing Yori into their care, as long as they kept her quarantined for a little while.

Naomi had stopped by to drop off some clothes for her to wear, figuring she wouldn't want to come back to the Academy in her hospital wear. She waited patiently on the little sofa, fiddling with the fringe of her scarf and humming a senseless tune.

"Naomi-san?"

Yori stepped out of the washroom, running her hands down the soft navy material of her skirt. Her friend had brought her that, along with a long white sweater and knee-high socks; those were the easiest to pick out, seeing as how she only had white and black ones. The only thing she had missed was shoes, but Yori assured her it was okay. She still had her uniform boots there.

"Sayori-san, you look lovely. So much healthier, too," she smiled at her and stood up. "Chairman Cross should be here soon to pick you up."

"Eh, and you, too?" Yori questioned, examining her face in the mirror. A good portion of color had finally returned to her, meaning she no longer looked sallow and grey.

"No. My parents are coming to get me. I'm going home for the next few weeks to spend Christmas with my family."

"You all do that?"

"Yes," she covered her mouth, trying to cover up her giggles, but Yori soon joined in with her laughing. "My mother is from America, and it's a big thing over there to celebrate. So, she convinced my father to let me be raised with it, too. I love it!"

Yori nodded. "What do you all do?"

Sitting back down, Naomi explained everything about her family's tradition, from decorating the tree to wrapping presents together and singing carols. Yori was enthused and listened very intently, eyes sparkling like a child's on Christmas morning, as Naomi had called it.

"It all sounds really wonderful, Naomi-san. I've only exchanged gifts with my friend on New Year eve."

"Well, we could do that!" Naomi stood back up and walked up to Yori.

"Oh, no. I couldn't let you buy me anything."

"You're not. I'm doing it without your permission," she pulled the younger girl into a tight hug, a bright smile that made her cheeks hurt forming. "Sayori-san, I'm so glad we're friends."

For the first time in a few days, a true smile crossed Yori's face. She placed her arms around Naomi's waist and hugged her back.

"Me too."

A knock against the door pulled the girls' from their hug. They looked and saw one of the nurses that had cared for Yori standing there.

"Wakaba-san, the person picking you up has arrived." She left when Yori nodded to her.

"Well, I had best be going to. I can't make my parents wait very long."

"Be safe, and have a wonderful time, okay?" Yori surprised Naomi when she stood on her toes a little and pulled her into another hug.

"I will. And you finish getting better!" She waved her goodbye before leaving the room.

Sitting down on the bed, she slipped her socked feet in her boots, lacing them up and allowing her thoughts to wander a bit. She hadn't thought any of the event that had occurred last night, nor did she really want to, but it tugged at the corners of her mind. That letter. She didn't want to face it, so she had tucked it away deep inside of her bag. Her father had surprised her from mentioning what he did in it. He had always been so formal with her, and his writing proved to be the same. What surprised her even more though was that her fiancé was going to present himself to her instead of waiting for a suitable time that both of the families could meet. Whoever he was, he seemed to be a very bold individual.

"Wakaba-san?"

Yori saw the same nurse from a few minutes ago had returned, a little fidgety looking now.

"I'm coming." She hopped up from the bed, threw her bag over her shoulders and walked out of the hospital room, looping her scarf around her neck.

* * *

Outside, she was in for a shock. Naomi had told her that Chairman Cross said he would be picking her up from the hospital, but that didn't seem to be so. In his place was a man taller than him with short, bronze colored hair. She made a small noise to signal her being there, and he turned around. She was shocked.

"Takamiya-sensei?"

Takamiya smiled warmly at the girl, extending a hand towards her.

"Wakaba, it's good to see you in better health. Your bag?" She handed it over to him, still watching him with wide eyes. He chuckled. "You really should get that look off of your face. You look as though you've seen a vampire."

"E-eh?" She felt her panic kick in when he spoke those words. "What are you talking about, Takamiya-sensei?"

His unrestrained laughter quickly dissipated the tension that had been quick to form.

"Relax, Wakaba-kun. Things like that don't exist, right?"

Yori inwardly sighed with relief. _That was close._ She slid in the passenger seat of the sleek black car when Takamiya opened the door for her, missing the look of ownership he cast towards her.

_Soon, my dear Sayori, _he thought, smiling grandiosely. Taking his own place in the driver's seat, he started the car, willing it to warm up quickly. Reaching in the back seat, he produced a rather large blanket and all but forced it in her unsuspecting arms.

"What's this for?"

"You're still sick, correct?" She nodded curtly. "Then think of this as a precaution. We can't have you getting any sicker on us." He laid the blanket across her lap, smoothing it out, which caused a nervous expression to cross her face.

"Thank you," she bowed her head, subtly shifting her legs to knock his hands off. Her curiosity still peaking, she hesitantly brought up her question. "Um, Takamiya-sensei...?" she trailed off.

"Hm?" He didn't verbalize it, but she still knew he was listening. He kept his eyes on the road.

"Why did you come instead of Chairman Cross?" Anyone who knew anything about her knew that she was a very blunt girl. She didn't beat around the bush, didn't play any of those silly games. She furtively believed that if you had something to say then it should just be said as is.

Takamiya was fast on the heels of her question with a response, almost as though he expected it.

"Chairman Cross has been very busy for the past few days with the holidays coming up. So many of the students are actually going home this year, apparently."

"Is that so?" she whispered to herself, turning her attention to the clouded window. Sneakily, she raised her thin fingers to it, tracing small patterns along the bottom of it. Little did she know, Takamiya glanced over at her from time to time. He realized how young she was, and, to a degree, she still acted like a child, and it made him feel odd since he had always pictured his wife-to-be being a modest, mature woman. While Yori was indeed quite the modest young lady, she wasn't so much what he was anticipating. But still, he found her to be intriguing, and therefore could not make himself back out of the engagement. Now, he only had to wait for the perfect timing to introduce himself fully to her, in high hopes that she, too, would accept the arrangement.

The car ride was relatively silent after her questioning him at the beginning, but it was a comfortable silence. She sat, curled up in the blanket he had given her, watching as the snow covered trees blurred by in a rush, and neither of them uttered a word until they reached the Academy grounds.

"Wow."

Things had certainly changed for the two days she had been in the hospital. Gold and red occupied almost every spot across the courtyard, ribbon having been tied around the posts and ornaments hanging off of lavish looking tinsel wreaths. It was far more grandiose than it had ever been, that she could remember. It almost seemed as though they tried to pull the sight of someone off of the wreckage that once was the Moon Dorm by decorating so much. It worked, or at least it did for her, for that's all she could really focus on. Takamiya pulled up to the front of the Academy and the second the car stopped, Yori jumped out, stumbling a little from still being so weak. He was quicker, though, practically ripping himself from the car and rushing over to aid her. He gripped her arms and pulled her against him at the same moment that two people stepped out of the front doors.

"Yori-chan, I'm so glad to see your bright and adorable face once again!"

Chairman Cross stood there, looking comical with his over-sized, puffy white earmuffs, all wrapped up in a dark green winter coat, clasping his hands together as he looked at her. Embarrassed from the position she was in, she jerked out of Takamiya's grip, side-stepping a few feet for good measure before greeting him in return.

"It's good to see you, too, Chairman," she smiled brightly at him, and her eyes fell on the person beside him. Zero was completely still, the ends of the belt that was supposed to be fastened around his jet-black coat the only thing on his being moving. He didn't even really look like he was breathing, and he kept his eyes on the ground, almost as though he refused to look at her. Which he did, but she had no clue about that.

"Isn't it good to see her again, Zero-kun?"

Zero didn't say a word, nod his head, nothing. He turned around and walked back inside, leaving Yori slightly wounded. What did she do to him?

"Ah, you'll have to forgive him, Yori-chan! He's not been in the highest of spirits since we came back here last night," he scratched the back of his head. "I'm sure he's just gotten himself in one of those moods again."

"Not that Kiryuu has ever been one for being in high spirits," Takamiya joked, retrieving Yori's bag from the trunk of the car. "Would you like for me to carry this for you?"

Coming back to reality, Yori looked up at him.

"I'm sorry?"

"Your bag. Shall I carry it for you, Wakaba?"

"No, it's fine. I can carry it. Thank you, Takamiya-sensei."

"Alright, Yori-chan. Follow me!" Chairman Cross scurried back inside like a small animal escaping the cold with her close behind him. Zero hadn't gone far; he was leaned against one of the pillars in the darkened foyer, one of his legs bent up and his arms crossed. To her, he looked like he was staring at the ground, but in actuality, he watched her carefully, eyes hidden behind the hair falling across his face. "Come on, dear." She hadn't noticed she was trailing so far behind him until he spoke up, making her jump. She hurried over to him, trying to forget about the young man she had left behind. Chairman Cross led her up a stairwell that took them to his office.

"Chairman Cross?"

"Yes?"

She rocked back and forth on her toes in the doorway of his office, unsure about whether to go inside.

"Shouldn't I be going back to my dorm?"

"Ah, well, you see," he paused and pushed his glasses up higher on his nose. "Dr. Tsukishima only let you come into our care as long as we promised to keep you quarantined from the other students'. And, well, we figured you wouldn't want to spend your holiday in the hospital, so we agreed." Yori nodded. "Good."

"So, where will I be staying?"

"Great question, Yori-chan! You will be staying here," he opened a door, waving her over. Standing beside him, she peered into the room that had been behind the door. It wasn't really a simple room, quite a few lavish things about it, and it was larger than her own dorm. A pink and champagne bed was pressed against a window, sheer white curtains hugging around it. There was a fireplace that was currently empty, decorated with decorations similar to those hanging outside. A chest of drawers was backed into a corner, and beside that, a intricate looking vanity, cluttered with several bottles of perfume and necklaces.

"It's...pretty," she breathed.

"Yes. It was Yuuki's before I allowed her to stay in the dormitories."

Blood rushed to Yori's ears.

"I couldn't stay in here, Chairman. It's Yuuki's room. You know how she gets when people bother with her things." Fond memories entered her mind of her best friend, and a deep embedded pain shot through her chest.

"Yes, well, I don't think she really has much use for it anymore," Chairman Cross mumbled sadly, averting his eyes from the room.

"I'm sorry," she apologized quickly.

"It's alright, Yori-chan. Here," he took her bag from her hand. "Let's get you situated in." He made fast work of unpacking her bag and placing her things in correct drawers. "We'll move some more of your things in here later today. Is that alright?"

"Of course." She made her rounds around the room, stopping at the fireplace and looking at the pictures sitting on the mantel. There were ones of Yuuki when she was a little girl, cute face beaming and round eyes shining, of herself and Yuuki when they had first become friends, and several of Chairman Cross with Yuuki. She was in every photograph, and it made Yori's heart hurt from seeing her face like this.

"Yori-chan?"

"Yes?" she pulled her attention from the pictures, looking over her shoulder at Chairman Cross.

"I asked you if you were hungry."

She hadn't even heard him speak, too wrapped up in her memories.

"No, I'm not," she assured him. "I'm still not feeling well enough. It might not be a good idea for me to eat."

"Well, you will have to soon. Even if one of us has to spoon feed you," she could tell he was kidding, or at least hoped he was, but it still made a blush rise up her neck as a thought of a certain person entered her mind. "Okay, well. I'll leave you to your things for now, and I'll be back to check on you later." He waved, but then realized he still held something in his hand. "Oh, here you are." He held it out to her. That letter. She took it between her fingers, smiling a thank you, and keeping the happy look on her face until he closed the door behind him, then visibly drooped, dropping to the ground and burying her head in her hands. She knew that this day would come, but for it to sneak up on her so unexpectedly had made her feel more ill than she had while in the hospital. The day she turned sixteen was the day her parents had begun to search for the perfect husband for her, in their eyes. She knew she'd be one to end up in an arranged marriage, since her parents were one, so she never showed any objection to it. Not that she really could have. And now, she had been engaged to a man she had never met, or even seen, before for an entire year, only to be surprised with a letter saying he had arrived and was going to show up in front of her soon. Throwing the letter across the room, she fell backwards and covered her mouth, muffling her scream with her hands.

"Can things get any more complicated?!"

* * *

"Why did you put her in there?"

Chairman Cross squealed dramatically when he heard Zero speak from behind him, causing him to sigh.

"Oh, Zero-kun, don't sneak up on me like that. Really, I thought I taught my son better manners than that." He jumped once more when Zero's hands meet forcibly with his desk, causing a crack to splinter the middle of it.

"How many times do I have to say it? You may have raised me, but I don't ever remember becoming your son," he spit out between gritted teeth, causing Chairman Cross to tremble.

"Oh, Zero-kun, you're so mean!" he whined.

"Why did you put her in there?" he repeated himself, enunciating the words slowly.

"Well, you see, she's still sick. And the only reason why the hospital gave her to us is because I promised I would keep her away from everyone so she can heal and become her sweet self again," he carried on lovingly, clasping his hands together.

"It's Yuuki's room," Zero obviously wasn't in a good mood, his anger almost at its peak. His hands trembled as he clamped them into tight fists.

"Yes, I know that. But, Yori-chan is also Yuuki's best friend-,"

"But she's not Yuuki!" he yelled, causing Chairman Cross to cover his ears and cower. "She'll never be her." Zero was usually a very calculating man, thinking about things in detail before acting out, but when things tugged at his most aggressive emotions, sometimes they got the best of him and he spoke or acted without and before thought. That was when he was brought down from his angry high when the door cracked open.

"I never said she was Zero-kun...," his voice quieted and he too noticed the door having opened.

Yori stood there, still fully clothed in her winter gear, the letter from her father crumpled up in her hand. She had heard every word they said. Giving neither one of them any acknowledgement, she walked briskly past them, barely reaching the door before Chairman Cross started freaking.

"Where are you going, Yori-chan?" he cried out, trying to rush over to her, but tripped over his lion feet slippers.

"Really, how can you ever be taken seriously?" Zero muttered, looking down at the pitiful lump at his feet.

He shook his head and stood up, restating his question.

"Back to the hospital," she answered tersely, turning the doorknob and stepping out.

"But, they released you to us," his argument was no good.

"I know, but I can't stay here," she kept her back turned to them, afraid she'd break if she had to face them. "I'm causing too much trouble," she added in a whisper. Her hand tightened around the letter.

"What are you talking about?" It was the first words he had spoken to her, but the way they sounded so detached, as though he were asking for the sake of Chairman Cross, which he probably was, made her temper flare, as well as her sadness.

"I'm just going to stay there and wait for my fiancé," she forced the word out, not liking the way it sounded one bit. She was meant to wait for him at the Academy, but with the way things were turning out, she figured this would be best. Tears pooled in her eyes, but she blinked them back, refusing to cry now. Instead, she took off down the hallway and the stairwell, a distant shouting of her name from Chairman Cross being the last thing she heard. She didn't know where she was running to, or even how she'd get to the hospital, if that was her true destination, but when she collided with something solid, her thoughts scattered. The figure held on to her, keeping her from falling, and she felt a sense of déjà vu.

"Where are you headed to, Wakaba?"

Yori looked up, only to be met with the concerned laced hazel eyes of none other than...

"Takamiya-sensei," she breathed out, trying to back away from him. He wasn't letting go this time, instead pulling her towards him. He noticed the tears clinging to her eyelashes, and was determined to figure out what had happened.

"Why don't you come to my classroom for a moment? I can help you catch up on what you missed so you won't fail," he knew she was one who wouldn't want to fail, and used that to his advantage, smirking a little when she nodded and followed him. Tilting his head back, he noticed a very irate looking young man standing at the top of the stairs, gripping the banister harshly, having witnessed this, in his mind, victory. He signaled him an "OK" and casually put a hand on Yori's shoulder.

Zero's eyes followed them until they were out of sight.

* * *

So, after a few days of writers block, I came up with...this. Which, now that I reread it, it's not much. But, if I promise that Yori will figure something really big out (spoiler alert!) next chapter, will that make up for it?

Also, Yori, shouldn't you know better? Don't ask if things can get more complicated, because then they will. Zero will make sure of it ;D Just like he's not ignoring you. He's just a jealous mess that's yet to figure it out. Right?

Here's a bundle of thanks to my reviewers',

DrkSpphrGT: Ohoho, your review ^_^ I loved it. I'm totally with you about loving the side-characters more, which is why I adore Yori and hate Yuuki. I have read Left Behind, and I loved it, too! Don't you worry. I won't abandon His Only Princess; I'm anticipating what I'll write too much to do that! Here's you a cyber hug back, as well as an update :) I hope you like it!

Anon: I'm glad you did :) I was wondering how people would react to that twist.

Julianne: Of course Mr. Fiancé wouldn't have been able to keep quiet for long ;) I'm glad that I am actually keeping them in character! I thought maybe I just believed I was. Just wait, though. He's about to make his presence much more known.

HYPERASSGIRL5: That naughty, naughty Kaito ;) When will he ever learn? And a hell bent Zero is always the most fun to write, in my opinion. You're welcome; keep up the awesome work on your story!

crazy reader: It was a major surprise. I was even surprised while writing it, but I'm glad it's getting a positive response.

Lakemet: Thank you so much! I am unspeakably happy that my story is :)

And to the rest of you awesome readers', thank you! Feedback is greatly appreciated, if you feel like something should be different, or just want to give opinions on how you think the story will/how you want the story to go :) I read _every_ review. Or PM.

So, there's Chapter 6. Chapter 7 should be up tomorrow. And in my spare time while trying to clear the cobwebs in the writing part of my brain, I did a drawing of Yori in her wedding dress for this story. It's on my DeviantArt, which there's a link for on my profile, if any of you want to see it :)

Until Chapter 7!

-IdleScribe


	8. His Only Princess, Chapter 7

His Only Princess: Chapter 7

* * *

"Well, I'm afraid that you did miss the test." Takamiya walked behind his desk and pulled a drawer open. He procured the test he had saved, just for her, and slid it in front of her. Tapping his finger against it twice, he smiled. "Do you think you're ready for it?"

"I do," she stated firmly, taking the test from him and going to sit at her desk.

"Wakaba!"

She turned when he called for her, and he suddenly seemed nervous because of his outburst.

"There's no need to go over there. Here," he swung his chair around to the front of his desk. "Sit here and take it." She did as instructed, taking her seat and choosing to ignore the way his hands hovered over her before he walked off to the other side of the room. She unraveled the scarf from her neck and laid it in a nice pile by her side. "It's noon right now," she watched him while he spoke. "I'll give you exactly one hour. No more, no less. Sound good, Wakaba?" His eyes traveled lazily over to her, a nonchalant smile on his face. Really, he was an attractive man.

"I'll do my best, Takamiya-sensei."

He was about to burst at the seams from pride in her.

"I know you will." Approaching her seat, he took her scarf in his hands, shushing her when she began to question him. "Don't want such a pretty thing to get ruined on the dirty floor, do you?" He draped the light scarlet material over his arm, and there it stayed as she scribbled her way through the five page test. When she came up on a question she didn't really know, he noticed she began biting nervously on the tip of her thumb, glancing around the room in a way that he shouldn't have noticed. But, of course, he was very attuned with her at the moment. Keeping a very straight face, he came up behind her and glanced over her shoulder, picking out the correct answer in mere seconds.

"It's the third one," he whispered in her ear, causing her to gasp from his extremely close proximity to her.

"Takamiya-sensei?" He could tell she was confused, and a small pout took hold of her mouth.

He was falling for her more every minute.

"Just think of it as a break for being sick. Just don't think it'll happen again," he tepidly warned her, pointing a finger at her nose. She went cross eyed staring at it. "Finish your test." He patted her head and walked away.

Yori couldn't really focus, her mind going array from the way she was being treated. It went from overhearing Chairman Cross and Zero arguing about how she'd never be Yuuki to Takamiya treating her like she was a little girl. Or, more so special than just a student. It was really all so trying on her weakened state of mind.

The hour ticked by slowly, but she finally answered the last question. Laying her pen down across the test, she wrapped her hand around her wrist and rotated it in circles, trying to restore the blood flow to her sore fingers.

"Are you finished?"

"Yes, Takamiya-sensei," she stood up, stretching her arms over her head, getting a relieving satisfaction when her tense muscles were pulled on. She was an entirely innocent person, one who was oblivious to her own body, but Takamiya was a grown man, and he watched the way her movements accentuated her subtle curves greedily, almost ashamed, but then remembered. He was engaged to her. "I should probably be going now."

"What's the rush?" he asked a little too quickly, but he covered it up smoothly. "Wouldn't you like to stick around and see your grade?"

She seemed to ponder with the idea for a few minutes, but then shook her head. She reached for the letter she had stuck in her sweater pocket, only to notice it was no longer there. Confused, she began searching the immediate area around her.

"Is something the matter, Wakaba?"

"No, no, everything's fine."

"Then what are you looking for?"

She exhaled loudly and buried her fingers deep in her short hair.

"Nothing, really. It was just a-,"

"This?" he held up the crumpled piece of paper, balancing it in the middle of his palm, curious as to why she blanched when she saw him with it. He lifted his arm when she came over, effectively keeping her from it.

"Takamiya-sensei!" she complained desperately, jumping up in an attempt to snatch the letter from him, but it was a futile attempt. He was taller than Zero, and she thought she was lucky that the top of her head almost reached his shoulder. It wasn't even close to that on Takamiya. "Can I have it back, please?"

Takamiya knew he was being unfair to her, but he wanted to know what was so important about whatever was on the piece of paper that it had her so enthused to get it back. Surely it wasn't anything from Zero...

"Why is this thing so important? You obviously couldn't have cared so much about it from the state it's in." Deciding to play his cards a bit longer, he started to unfurl the poor paper, not expecting the outcome of such event.

"No!" Yori slammed into him, grabbing onto his arms the best she could with the height difference. Ending up with only bunched up material of his blazer in her hands, she pulled in an unrelentingly manner.

Taking advantage of her closeness, Takamiya let the letter drop behind him and brought his arms down swiftly, wrapping them securely around her waist and tugging her to him. She squeaked in surprise, but then began fighting against his hold, very obviously uncomfortable with his advances towards her.

"Let go of me," she demanded, but it was weak and scared sounding. She continued pushing against him, trying to gain any sort of control.

"I know what that letter says," he mumbled his lie to her, watching her with heavy lidded eyes. Her scent intoxicated him, and her being so near made him feel more pleasure than he would have expected. She stilled in his arms, daring to look up at him. He could see the panic evident in her eyes. "Why do you look so afraid, Sayori?"

Her eyes went even wider, if that was possible.

"Takamiya-sensei, please don't call me-,"

"Sayori? Why not? You have a very beautiful name," he allowed one of his hands to travel away from her waist, bringing it up to rest against her cheek, which was very warm. "You really have no idea who I am, do you?" Her scarf was still hanging on his arm, and, keeping her in place with one hand on the small of her back, he settled it back around her neck, his hand lingering against her neck. His thoughts traveled to Zero. He knew Yori smelled wonderful to him, a mere human, and he could only imagine how that must have been magnified for someone like him. Taking one look at her, he decided he would always protect her from the likes of him, no matter how much he could actually tolerate the vampire.

She shivered from fear in his hold.

"H-how could you know what that says?" she stumbled over her words and pointedly stared at the letter laying on the ground, still attempting to struggle free.

"Because," he ran his thumb across her cheekbone. "I am your fiancé, Sayori." _Very subtle_, he scolded himself, biting down any words to take it back. It was only a guess as to whether that paper actually had anything to do with that or not, but he knew he was going to have to inform her of it, and this had certainly not been the way he wanted to. However, the way he saw it, it had to happen, because Zero was nearing her more and more everyday, moving in on what was _his_. In the midst of his mental argument with himself, his hold on her slackened, and a sudden burst of adrenaline from her effectively pushed her far from him.

She landed on the floor with a solid _thud. _Her breathing had become short, and she gasped frantically, flinching at any movement he made.

"Are you okay?" he made to help her when she leaped up, smacking his hands away from her and darting to the door. "Wakaba!"

_No, no, no, _she thought over and over again, wanting to pinch herself so she could wake up from this very awful dream. This had to be a dream. She dimly realized that this had begun to become a problem, her fleeing from that which she wished to not face. But then again, maybe she had always had that trait about her and never knew it because nothing of this caliber had ever occurred in her life before. Not until after that fateful event one year ago, when she had fought to keep her memories of everything. Now though, she wished so much she hadn't been allowed to.

Yori continued running, easily avoiding the people walking in the hall. She didn't really care about what they thought of her, though. She just had to get away. One of the people attempted to grab her, but she jerked her arm away from them, never slowing down. Confused, they followed her, deciding to take care of their original plans later.

* * *

It was bright outside, being just an hour or so past noon, and the sunlight hurt her stinging eyes. Her first thought was to go to her dorm, but then she also wasn't completely certain that Naomi wasn't there. So she went with her next thought and headed towards the thick woods that hugged around the edge of the campus.

Once she was far enough in the dark, she slowed down, finally stopping. She was on the verge of passing out from having to breathe so heavily, and she pushed her hands against her chest to try and calm herself down, even the smallest bit. The feel of his hands was still present on her, and she trembled, crumbling to the ground in a heap of unabashed tears.

"Father, why?"

* * *

He couldn't figure out really what direction she had gone in, but her scent still lingered in the area, strengthening in certain areas as he walked. Using this as his guide, he moved around the maze that was her, finally stopping at the mouth of the mass of dark trees. Sighing, he made his way through the tangling, low limbs, set on finding her. He had an advantage, since he could hear any minuscule movement that she might make, but she had seemed to hide herself very well, determined to not be found, at least for a little while. He had been searching for several minutes when he finally found her.

She was curled up in a ball, hidden underneath some loose brush hanging from one of the trees. Obviously she had learned nothing, even after being in the hospital. She was motionless, not even shivering under the harsh cold whipping around her or moving when he got close to her.

"Didn't you learn anything the first time?" he asked, cold toned, removing his coat in order to drape over her. The second he came into contact with her, she snapped.

"Don't touch me!"

His hands stopped inches from her body, and now that he could see her clearly, he found his assumption from before had been very wrong. Wet streaks covered her unnaturally pale face, and small tremors shook her hands. Her eyes were wild with fear, and he could only wonder what had happened to her. Pushing himself forward, he wrestled the coat around her narrow shoulders and held her in place with firm hands.

"Look at me," he ordered, not really taking the time for pleasantries or speaking kindly. She wasn't cooperating, and he'd use close to any method he could to make her do so. She had seemed to calm down some, but was still shaky as he held on to her and refused to meet his eyes.

"Takamiya-sensei," she whispered, staring at the ground. Zero felt an angry streak rip through him at her words. If that man had done anything to her, fiancé or not, he'd make him pay.

"Did he do something to you?"

She had fallen silent once more, spaced out. He gave up on his patience of waiting for her to snap out of it and placed his hands on the sides of her face, forcing her to look at him.

"Did Takamiya do something to you?" he stressed his question, trying to get her to understand the importance for her to answer.

"He's my...," she barely mouthed the words, little noise being made, but he still caught every word. "Takamiya-sensei. He's my..." She spoke no more, shaking her head slowly, and he could make out the tears forming in her eyes. He knew, and now _she_ knew, and really didn't seem to be taking it very well. But, such a reaction couldn't have come from just words, and the Takamiya that Zero knew was an action kind of man. So, he had had to do_ something_ to make her act so jumpy.

"Come on, let's get you back inside." He pulled her out with him, one arm holding her up by her waist. She was too short to be able to balance by holding on to him, which left him with only one other option. Bending down, he hooked his arm behind her legs and held her close, not ignorant to the fact that she attempted to create some form of space between her body and his.

* * *

"Here." He held out a cup of tea to her, but she only looked at it blankly. "Take it, Wakaba." He wasn't about to give her any special treatment, because she was a smart girl, and would probably easily figure out that he had known about Takamiya. Forcing the cup into her hands, he sat down on the floor, right across from her.

Yori sat the cup on the floor and leaned her head against the brick framing around the fireplace, eerily silent. When she finally did speak, though, they certainly weren't the words he had been expecting.

"I'm sorry."

He expected her to scream, or cry, or even rant about how awful it was to find out she was engaged to Kaito Takamiya, possibly the world's biggest annoyance, right after Aidou Hanabusa. Those two could have been brothers, honestly. Not an apology. No, he didn't think she would do that.

"For what?" he asked tiredly, crossing his legs and resting his elbows on them, chin perched on his fists. Silver strands covered his pale colored eyes from her view, not that she was even looking at him.

"Everything. Making you go out of your way all the time," she shrugged. "Being a bother. I'm not Yuuki-chan."

He straightened up at her words, his eyes widening. Well, now he knew what she meant when she said she was only causing trouble. She had heard them talking. He didn't say anything, giving her opportunity to speak if she so wished to.

"I was being selfish. I guess I thought that since I was her best friend, that maybe I could help, since I understood what you all were going through. But, I obviously didn't, and still don't," she stole a glance at him before finding her hands much more interesting. "Kiryuu-san?" Her addressing him stunned him. She had become comfortable enough with him over time to adopt calling him 'Zero-kun', and he didn't mind her doing so. It was the first time she had spoken to him so formally.

"What?"

She took a deep breath, thinking carefully over her words before she spoke them.

"Do you...you," she made a sound of aggravation, not seeming to know how to word what she wanted to say for a moment. Then she continued, uneasily. "You love Yuuki-chan, right?" She automatically steeled herself once the words were out, her defenses flying up, and subconsciously began to pick at her nails, a habit she had taken up when dealing with things that made her upset. During her and Yuuki's friendship, she had never been close to Zero, and still wasn't, but was more so now than when Yuuki had been with them. And she'd be lying if she said she didn't ever notice how attractive he was. She had a budding crush on the easily provoked, bad-tempered, very handsome Guardian, but also knew that he only had eyes for her best friend since his twin brother had spilled his secret. So, she would never tell him or do anything to give it away.

"Uh, well," Zero stuttered around, trying to find his voice. She was full of unexpectedness today, it seemed. "Yes. I mean, a part...a part of me still does." He watched her while he spoke, his own thoughts betraying his words. Yes, a part of him still held Yuuki in his heart, but he'd be a liar if he said he never noticed the girl in front of him. She was quiet, so very easily looked over, but she was also very smart and witty. And pretty. He wasn't going to deny that Yori was a pretty girl, but Yuuki had always outshone her, her bubbly personality always blocking Yori from sight. Yuuki was a completely different kind of beauty. But, she was also a Pureblood, and that seemed to have some affect, apparently. Yori, on the other hand, was completely, entirely human, making her beauty natural. More innocent than sultry.

"Wakaba?"

"Hm?" she closed her eyes, her hands closing into fists in her lap.

"What happened to calling me by my first name?" he'd change the subject if it'd make her talk more. That, and he really wasn't up for speaking about Yuuki to anyone.

She shrugged again.

"I thought it was more appropriate not to."

"Hm," he hummed thoughtfully, scooting closer to her. Her eyes were still closed, so she didn't notice. "And why is that?" Another shrug. "So, then our roles are kind of reversed." He knelt in front of her and placed a finger under her chin, tilting her head up. Her eyes snapped open at the contact. "Right, Sayori-chan?"

_"Why do you look so afraid, Sayori?" _

Her eyes widened, suddenly assaulted with thoughts of her prior..._engagement. _She moved away from him, bringing her own hands up to her face, able to feel _his_ touch on her again.

Zero couldn't comprehend where her strange behavior had come from. He had never seen her excited, afraid...anything, really. She was always the calm in the middle of the storm that was their lives', and he had just always expected her to remain as such. But, to see her so skittish of being touched, it had him puzzled.

"Hey," he spoke softly so as not to startle her, reaching a hand towards her once more, only to have her react the same to it.

"Please, go away," she whispered brokenly, shutting her eyes and wrapping her arms around her torso. She was on an emotional high, her jealousy, anger, and sadness on rampage within her, and she didn't know how to handle it.

"Wakaba-,"

"Please," she spoke with a bit more force. "Just go."

The soft click of the door closing was her signal that she was alone and could let go. Confused sobs ripped through her chest as she doubled over, finally opting to lay on her side on the floor.

* * *

On one side of the door, a distraught and confused young girl lay there, hoping to cry this out and forget about it by the next morning. On the other side, a distraught and confused young man, listening to her cry, and deciding on one crucial thing; he would find out what Takamiya had done, if anything, as well as sort out his own feelings.

The following night had been the quietest that Cross Academy had ever seen.

* * *

Oh no! It's a day late! It must be pregnant :O dun, dun, DUN! Haha, anyways. This chapter was, um...emotional? Definitely not expected, probably. But, I hope you all like it! I'm playing around with the Yuuki conflict, just because Zero's not going to be all magical and suddenly be like "Yori, I want to have your baby!" (xD kidding.) But seriously, that's a no-no. We can't move them ahead three spaces when it's not their turn.

I feel that maybe I made Yori a little too emotional though . But, she has a crush on Zero, and she's engaged, and Takamiya was all up on her...wouldn't you be emotional too? *sobs*

Thank you to my awesome reviewers', Anon and HYPERASSGIRL5. And thank you to my incredible, spectacular, wonderful, beautiful readers, too! You all just make my day! :D

Feedback is always greatly appreciated :)

Until Chapter 8!

-IdleScribe


	9. His Only Princess, Chapter 8

His Only Princess: Chapter 8

* * *

Yori awoke the next morning, feeling awkward about her actions from the other day. Sitting up in the bed, she rubbed the sleep out of her droopy eyes with her knuckles, her hysterical moments replaying behind her closed eyes. She groaned and flopped back, hair fanning out around her head, and covered her face. In her mind, there was no discernible excuse for it, and she felt thoroughly mortified.

"There's no way I can face them," she smacked herself on the forehead a few times, leaving a decent sized red mark in the middle of it. But then again, she wouldn't skip class for anything, really, which resulted in her scooting along to the adjoining bathroom to wash up and get dressed for her first actual day back in class after getting back from the hospital.

* * *

She felt as though she moved in slow motion for the most of the day. It was unnervingly quiet without her chatterbox of a friend always next to her, and even though Zero was in his classes today, he didn't even look in her direction. It was understandable, because she had crossed the line.

Which she vowed to never do again, but still. It didn't change the way she had acted.

Ethics class passed by at a snail's pace. Takamiya was acting completely normal, his usual cool attitude shining through, making the Day Class girls' positively swoon over him. Too bad for them that he was already engaged.

She found herself sneaking glances at him when his back was turned, or simply when he was looking in a direction that he wouldn't catch her. He was really handsome, admittedly. Any girl would be lucky to be engaged to such a regal looking man.

_At least _he_ didn't see everything_, she sourly thought. She had originally wanted to pass everything off as being stressed and still in a silly state from being on such heavy drugs due to her pneumonia, but she didn't even really think that'd work. She was just ridiculous acting.

When Takamiya passed by her, she raised her hand to get his attention.

"Yes, Wakaba?" he smiled kindly at her, as usual, not seeming the least bit perturbed.

"I was wondering if I could speak to you after class, Takamiya-sensei?" she questioned boldly, a little apprehensive of his response, but hoping it was positive.

He certainly looked surprised by it, but recovered his neutral expression quickly.

"Of course." Nodding, he continued walking up the rows, a ruler in his hand. She heard it smack down on a desk, and could only assume Zero had been asleep. She didn't bother to turn around and look, though.

When the bell finally rang out, the class dispersed in a speedy fashion, leaving her, Takamiya, and Zero behind. As to why the latter had stayed, she wasn't sure, but she really wished he hadn't. Once the last student had exited, Takamiya sighed and turned to her.

"You wanted to speak to me?" he arched an eyebrow, not letting his eyes leave her, even as an icy glare was directed towards him.

Yori rubbed her arm, uncomfortable with Zero's presence. The conversation she wanted to have with him was between the two of them, no onlookers required.

"Ah," she coughed, her eyes meteorically shifting to the stone-cold boy beside her. "I was...hoping to speak to you...alone," her voice dropped a few octaves on her last word, but it was still audible. She bowed her head, pink dusting across her face, so she missed the triumphant smirk cast towards Zero.

"Of course," he motioned to Zero. "Kiryuu, you'll have to excuse me for a moment. We can have that discussion you were dying to have later." He offered no room for him to oppose, even though he certainly would have tried. Instead though, he behaved and left, shooting a side-glance at Yori. "Okay," Takamiya closed the door behind him and went to his desk. He sat down and folded his hands, perching his chin on his knuckles. "What did you want to speak to me about?"

Steeling herself with a deep breath, she forced it out before she had the time to chicken out.

"I wanted to apologize, Takamiya-sensei."

Now he was interested in what she had to say. Unfolding his hands, he scooted his chair back and crossed his legs, letting his hands rest on his knee instead. He didn't speak, which was him signaling for her to continue.

"Yesterday, I was out of line. I treated you rudely, too much so for a student to act like with a teacher. I'm sorry for that," she bowed respectfully to him.

Takamiya rubbed the bridge of his nose, wondering why exactly she was the one doing this. He felt ashamed that his young student had more guts than he did. After she had fled the room, he wanted so much to rewind everything, to take back what he said, to do it correctly. He had convinced himself she wouldn't even look his way now, but she had proven that she would always be surprising him.

"Wakaba?"

"Yes?" she sounded hesitant.

Takamiya stood up, walking towards her slowly. He ran a hand through his tousled hair.

"I should be the one saying that," he laughed cattily, the cruel meaning laying under it directed towards himself. "I _really_ shouldn't have acted the way I did." He stopped, just shy of being directly in front of her. "I could only hope that you would forgive me."

Well, it wasn't a dream. She concluded that. But, the change in his demeanor blew her previous conclusions away, much like the wind outside blew the old snow across the ground. She had expected something similar to yesterday, him trying to hold onto her once more, but instead, she ended up with an apology and a look of shame on his tired looking face.

"Takamiya-sensei, are you feeling alright?" she ventured to ask him, since he really did look quite run down.

"To be honest, not so much," he shook his head and closed his eyes, his teeth gritting together. "I was up all night, trying to come up with any reason that would have made my actions excusable," he glanced up at her with apologetic eyes. "I didn't figure one out."

Yori stood, tight-lipped, watching him with a slight ache in her chest. No, what he did wasn't very considerate on his part, but her reactions weren't very respectable either.

When she continued to not speak, he took that as his sign to try and explain himself.

"You see, I've known about...this," he motioned between the two of them. "For quite awhile. However, things, up until now, made it impossible for us to ever meet. Especially under correct circumstances, which these most certainly are not. I didn't take this job because you were here, though; that was just an added bonus," he smiled softly, and even though his words were intimate, it didn't leave her frightened, but more so curious as to how he developed such unique feelings for her. "But, I'm pretty sure I sound like a madman right about now. How about I start from the beginning?" When she nodded in curious agreement, he took a seat at one of the tables, giving her the option to sit with him or stand.

Feeling the tiniest fraction more comfortable around him, she did sit with him, smoothing her skirt out nicely and zoning in on her hands.

He crossed his arms and tipped the chair back, balancing it on its back legs.

"When the whole process began, I'll admit, I was a skeptic. I didn't have an option, seeing as how I was born into an arranged marriage family, but the idea of marrying someone I had never met before seemed insane to me. I had just turned twenty when I found out I had been chosen as a possible candidate for a family's daughter, and was absolutely scared. Especially when I learned the age," his gaze ventured over to her, right as she looked up at him. "How appropriate do you think I felt? But, your father, he's a very convincing man."

"That he is," she quietly agreed. He had completely hoodwinked her into accepting the arranged marriage without being informed of anything to do with her fiancé.

"He had shown me photos of you, obviously. Actually, he had your entire life in photographs to show off," he chuckled a little when Yori blushed from embarrassment. "I fell instantly."

Her breath caught in her throat, and she watched him with interest.

"From your personality, which he did do a decent job of explaining, to your looks, it was impossible for me to not develop some sort of an attraction. However, I had predetermined that you were not my type from the get-go, simply because I had a fantasized idea that I'd marry someone similar to a princess, but instead got stuck with a commoner." The teasing lilt in his voice made her laugh.

Her comfort level of being around him grew as he continued speaking, her mind not focusing on the other day.

Until he brought it up.

"And about yesterday," he smoothed a hand along the back of his head. "I really am sorry, Wakaba. It was very inappropriate of me. It's just, I can't help but feel a little threatened."

"By what?" his words confused her, and even though it was a topic she was still sore about, she wanted to know why he had acted out the way he had.

"Kiryuu."

His response left Yori floored. He felt threatened...by_ Zero_?

"Why?" the amused tone to her voice shocked them both, but really. _Zero_? How absurd could he get?

"I guess you really just don't know," he sounded as though he was speaking to himself, and sounded amazed. "Anyways, I just wanted to apologize, Wakaba," he paused. "I can understand if you would wish to terminate the arrangement," he added gruffly. He abandoned the chair, letting it fall back on all four of its legs with a loud clunk.

When she saw he was about to leave the room, she stood up, causing her own chair to scrape loudly against the floor. He looked over at her.

"Takamiya-sensei, I," she stopped and thought out how she could say it properly without making it seem too final. "I...would be willing, to get to know you better. Before I decide anything," her mind was made up, and she wouldn't back out of her part of the agreement because of a fluke. She had decided to play the other day off as an accident. "The other day, we can pretend it never happened, if you'd like. We can start over." She offered him a sincere smile that made him pause in his actions of putting on his coat.

One arm hanging halfway out of one of his sleeves, he lowered his arms and just looked at her for a moment before speaking again.

"I'd like that."

* * *

She had migrated outside to do her homework. The sun was just barely setting, giving her at least another hour before curfew hit. Making sure she bundled up properly, she found a spot on the fountain in the middle of the courtyard to sit. It didn't run this time of the year, and the water that rested in the bottom of it had frozen over, making it look as though it was made of glass. The white lights decorating around the campus shone brightly, like little stars adorning the stones.

Even though she had only known her for a few days, Yori felt lonely without Naomi there to talk her ear off. She had become used to having someone attached to her side again, and now that she wasn't there, she felt a little colder. But, she'd be back after the New Year rang in, and she could only anticipate and count the days until then.

Her calculus homework had her rather stumped, seeing as how she had missed out on two days of lesson. And even though the teacher had attempted to explain it, he wasn't the most detailed individual, leaving his answers rather vague and her hopelessly lost on how to do it. She had erased the same problem for the third time when someone sat down next to her.

Glancing up, ready to ask them why they were disturbing her peace, she found she couldn't when she was met with the same icy eyes that had stared down Takamiya just an hour ago.

"Um," she wasn't too sure how to address him. She felt particularly weird around him, having acted like a complete loon when he had touched her, and found herself wondering why he even came around her now.

He leaned over, examining her eraser-raged paper, his cold breath tickling over her bare hands.

"Seems like your having problems," he pointed out, burying his hands in his coat pockets and leaning back slightly.

She cleared her throat and nodded. Going to put her papers back in her bag and hopefully escape her own awkwardness, her hopes were squandered when his hand held her in place.

"Would you like my help?"

* * *

She was certain she'd bang her head against the wall soon. That, or she'd throw him out of the window. Whichever came first.

Zero was, astonishingly, very good at calculus, and she didn't understand how. Didn't he sleep every day in there? The only problem was that he was almost as vague as the darned teacher, which helped her none. She was getting farther trying to work it out on her own. They had gone back to her dorm instead of the room Chairman Cross had stuck her in, which she preferred so much more.

Cramped and stuck together at the small desk, Yori put her head down, the small curls sticking out of her hair brushing against his hand.

"You're not helping me," she criticized, earning a ragged sigh from him.

"I'm getting you further than you were going to," he reproached pointedly, taking another stab at trying to explain the problem to her.

"No, you're just getting on my nerves. I can't understand a word you're saying!" She tossed her hands in the air, almost hitting him in the face.

"Watch it," he growled, grabbing her offending hand and shoving it down, which made her loose balance from her just sitting on the edge of her seat. Trying to regain it, her hand latched onto whatever it could reach first, which just happened to be his arm. The action moved them closer together than they already were, leaving a very small amount of space between them.

Zero turned from her, a somewhat pained expression on his face, and Yori barely kept herself from groaning. They had been getting along so well, her stupidity from the other day seemingly a thing forgotten, to her relief, and then she had to go and do something like that.

She fanned herself with her hands, trying to cool the heat that had taken over her face, which helped him none. The burn in his throat became the most prominent thing, and as hard as he tried, he couldn't make himself ignore it. Her motions only stirred her scent; he was biting at the bit, holding on to whatever ounce of control he actually had. He had been so distracted lately that he had completely ignored the fact that he never took his blood tablets, having now gone a solid two days without them. Not that that had even hindered him before, but when he had such a drugging scent around him, it was as though he had gone for years without feeding.

He stood up briskly and rushed out of the room, leaving his things behind.

Yori didn't know what to make of how he was acting, and, going against her better judgement, followed after him. He was a fast mover; every time she made it to where she had seen him go, he had already vanished. She had to guess several times as to which direction he had gone in, but she was clever and finally caught up with him just as he was walking out of the doors of the Sun Dorm.

"Zero-kun!" she called out without thinking about her words from before when she had addressed him so formally. Playing it off as an accident, she reminded herself.

He stopped, halfway out the door, his hand trembling from his tight grip on the frame.

"Go away, Wakaba," he warned sternly, fervently hoping she'd just leave. But, of course, she was stubborn, and he could hear her move closer, that rosy amber scent assaulting him from all directions. He felt like his jaw would lock from the pressure of his teeth grinding together. When she tentatively placed her hand on his arm, he was certain he was going to break right then and there.

"What's wrong?" she whispered, her concern for him easy to detect.

"It's best that you leave," he remained cold, still hopeful he could get her to leave from his sheer unpleasantness towards her. "I don't want to be around you," he added for an extra hit.

But she wasn't giving up just yet. The stupid girl.

"I want to help you," she sounded so certain about her statement, removing her hand from him.

He took a much needed breath, grimacing because the sweet smell was still there.

"You've helped me so much. I feel like I should repay you," she dared to take a step closer to him. "Please, let me help you."

No argument at hand, he reached down and grabbed her arm, dragging her behind him.

She asked to help, after all.

He ended up at the communal washroom for the Sun Dorm. Thankfully, no one felt the need to shower at this time of night, unless they were just a strange individual. Taking a quick survey of the area around them, deeming that no one was around, he walked in, Yori in tow right behind him.

She felt a little nervous when he let go of her and began pacing back and forth, his hands lost in his hair. It had grown longer, the ends of it now resting at the base of his neck and almost covering his tattoo. Watching him for a few more minutes, she thrummed her fingers against her lips, trying to think of something to say.

She didn't have to speak, though.

"You want to help me?" he sounded accusing, as well as disturbed, eyeing her reflection in the floor length mirror. He closed his eyes when she nodded. "Why?"

"Because," she began. "We're...friends. Friends help each other."

"Friends," he repeated the word, testing the sound of it out. "I guess we are." He approached her and made a move that threw a curve for her. His arms came around her waist, pulling her small body against him, and his tall frame leaned over, resting his head against her shoulder. "Friends help each other?" He felt her nod against him, her shaky hands coming to rest on his back in a soothing manner.

His world was tinted red. Pulling back a fraction from her, he lifted one of his hands and brushed the hair against her neck back, his lips a hairs breadth away from her skin. He could feel her accelerated pulse. His other hand gripped her shoulder, keeping her caged to him, and he lowered his mouth to her neck, licking the spot just above the juncture between her neck and shoulder.

She froze.

"Z-Zero-kun?" her scared voice came close to making him back away from her, but he had gotten this close. There was no hope for him, now. The irony of how familiar this was to him had him stuck in the past.

Unsheathing his extended fangs, he deliberated for only a second, tightening his hold on her.

The painful sting against her neck left her paralyzed. She gasped. Her eyes went wide with unadulterated fear, and she turned her head the little bit that she could, barely catching a glimpse of her reflection. She felt sick when she saw red staining the collar of her white uniform shirt. Things began to become blurry, and she saw technicolor dots flashing before her. Her hearing faded in and out, the only sound she was entirely aware of being her blood rushing behind them.

The very blood that Zero was drinking.

Her hands gripped tightly against his back, balling his shirt up in her fists, and her knees buckled underneath her, causing her to sag against him. If it wasn't for his strong hold on her, she was certain she would have fell to the floor. Her heart fluttered against her rib-cage, like it was a small hummingbird trapped inside of her.

As her mind increasingly became more and more hazy, her one logical formed thought zeroed in on her own words.

_"Friends help each other."_

She asked to help, after all.

* * *

This. Was. Written. In three hours. Tops...

I don't even know.

I needed to re-correct my mistake that was chapter 7, because that was on huge blunder on my part. And since I couldn't just go back and rewrite the whole thing, I decided to throw another surprise and distract you all! :D No, not really. I don't know about both chapters. I feel like I'm loosing my touch, especially on Yori. But, since she's a side-character turned main, it's hard to determine how she'd act since we only really see her all calm and collected x( Gah! I'll just excuse it as her being on drugs from her being sick, and we can ignore that poor thing. That's why I didn't let it have much effect on this chapter. I hope this one corrects it, at least to some degree. I_ had_ to have vampire Zero. I was going crazy from him being a good boy. I just hope I didn't fumble again and make this one weird.

Emotionally unstable and weird. This poor story is going to need therapy thanks to me.

Okay, time for the important stuff!

Thank you to:

Guest: I hope that not being able to think something is a good thing? Otherwise, I'm sorry T_T

Julianne: I agree, I agree. Too emotional *headbang* But, come on. In my defense, what would you do if Zero and Kaito wanted you? ^_^ (I know what I'd do...)

Lakemet: Woot! Thank you :D I don't particularly like him, but he makes for a nice antagonist.

Anon: I knowww :( But thank you for that. At least I'm getting them semi-correct.

DrkSpphrGT: Nice to hear from you again :) I know, she really was. That was my own awful mishap. Honestly, I think I'd do the same thing, haha! Thank you, you're welcome, and here's your update!

My fanfic brings all the readers' to the yard, and I'm like, you can read this...but then have to suffer from my over thanking of you beautiful people! ^_^

So, until Chapter 9!

-IdleScribe


	10. His Only Princess, Chapter 9

His Only Princess: Chapter 9

* * *

It was sluggish and gray outside. Snow fell in heavy sheets, blanketing the ground in pristine white.

Buttoning the last button of her blazer, Yori examined herself in her mirror. Her hair laid flat against her head, no matter how many times she tugged her fingers through it. Every piece of her uniform was in exact, perfect order; she had completely replaced her white button down shirt, the other having no chance of being restored to its original shape. There was just too much blood on the collar to try and get out. The thought of it sent a shiver down her spine, and she toyed with the pink satin ribbon, the one from the roses from her father, she had tied around her neck. Her thoughts went back to last night, studying with Zero, him storming out, the sting of his _fangs_ breaking her skin.

She was having a difficult time wrapping her mind around the fact that Zero was a vampire. It shouldn't have been so difficult; her best friend turned out to be one, as well as half of the student body at Cross Academy. But, Zero was a vampire _hunter_, and he had made his grounds about his view on vampires very clear. He despised them all, found them to be revolting, vile creatures only out to ruin human lives'.

"I don't have time to think about this," she grumbled to herself, perturbed with the fact that she was lagging around so much, and put on her brown, knee length coat, scooped her books into her bag, threw it over one shoulder, careful to avoid the sore side of her neck, and left her dorm room, closing the door behind her.

* * *

He felt like an emotional wreck. On the outside, he appeared to be his collected, cold self, glaring at anyone who crossed his path, but inside, he was furious with himself. He had sworn to himself he would not stoop to that point anymore, that Yuuki would be the _only_ one. In reality, he wanted nothing more than to lock himself up in his apartment, away from the world, away from her, destroy every blood tablet in his possession and leave himself to rot from starvation.

But, of course, he wasn't about to get his way, especially not when a very chipper Chairman Cross practically dragged him outside, kicking him all the way to the Academy.

Now, he sat outside of the building, leaned up against a tree just outside off the gates to the Sun Dorms, arms crossed and head bowed. He began ignoring every student that walked past him on their way to class, that is, until one made their way outside. He recognized them instantly, and his long fingers gripped at the material of his blazer sleeves as he focused on paying no mind to them.

* * *

Yori ran outside, easily out of breath once she reached the gates, proving the fact of her never being an athlete. She had always admired Yuuki for her impeccable skills, always flipping around and jumping out of windows. She was certain she would have met some horrible fate if she ever tried any of those stunts herself.

Taking a moment to catch her breath, she lifted her winter numbed fingers to her neck, checking the placement of the ribbon, when her eyes landed on a figure under a tree.

Zero.

He, what appeared to be to her, was sleeping, but his silver hair fell in his face, obscuring his eyes from her vision. His legs were stretched out in front of him, and she briefly wondered if the snow was freezing him, even though he sat perfectly still.

Sighing, she lowered her head, watching the ground directly in front of her and started her way to the actual Academy building, which meant walking past the stoic hunter. The result ended in her favor, however, because he didn't even seem to be aware of anyone's existence.

_He must really be asleep_, she thought, an unmeant sigh of relief being released. She didn't really know how she felt about the confrontation that needed to happen between the two of them, soon, but she would avoid it as long as possible. She left the scene, continuing to her class, not noticing the eyes following her or how they finally moved once she was out of sight.

* * *

"Okay!" Takamiya yelled at the class and slammed his ruler against the chalkboard, startling them all into silence. He paced back and forth, eyeing them all disdainfully. "So, all of your tests were terrible. I mean, come on! I didn't give you all that study period for my own benefit," he griped, waving the stack of papers around in the air before tossing them in the waste bin. "That means that each of you will be retaking the test next week." He was met with a chorus of groans from the class, which fed his frustration all the more.

"Takamiya-sensei?" An overly-wise looking boy raised his hand in the hair, pushing his glasses up higher on his nose with the other.

"Yes?" Takamiya turned to face the board, already uninterested with whatever smart comeback the kid had thought up.

"I really can't believe I failed," he sounded a little hesitant to speak, but did so anyways. "I studied the most out of everyone in here."

Takamiya interlaced his fingers and turned around, grinning smugly.

"Why don't you come down here and pull your paper out?" he gestured to the waste bin with the rolled up papers in it. "Tell the class what all of your studying got you."

The boy flushed crimson and lowered himself in his seat, obviously mortified because of his words.

Takamiya wasn't relenting any time soon, though.

"Oh, Michishige, what's the matter? Shall I retrieve your paper for you?" He approached the waste bin, fully intent on shaming the kid further, when a hand shot up and a voice rang out.

"Takamiya-sensei?"

"Yes?" He straightened up, but didn't turn around. He didn't need to to know who had spoken out.

Yori realized she had bucked up the ability to be more bold since she didn't live in the shadow of her best friend anymore, and a small sense of pride glowed within her. Before, she had never really spoken up in class, always being the quiet, smart girl. But now, she almost felt the need to produce a new image for herself.

"Shouldn't we begin class, then? We won't do any better next time if you don't help us," she stated matter-of-factly.

Takamiya felt the urge to roll his eyes, but a prideful smile took hold of his mouth. She certainly was proving to be a wonderful match for him, whether she fully realized it yet or not.

"Alright, Wakaba, you're right," he strode over to his desk and lifted one of his many large textbooks, flipping it open. "Please turn to page forty in your Ethical Theories textbook and let's begin."

* * *

The students were groaning and rubbing their temples by the time the bell for class to end rang. Takamiya had showed them no mercy and crammed every little ounce of information into them as he could, determined to make sure they passed the test next time he gave it out.

With strong words of encouragement, he bid each student a good day as they left the classroom, subtly reminding them to study, or else.

Before Yori could leave the room, however, an arm blocked her passage, causing her to stop abruptly.

Takamiya smiled down at her.

"Mind if I have a word with you?"

She shook her head no and followed after him as he seated himself at his desk, keeping about three steps away. She may have offered to get to know him better, but she wouldn't allow anything improper to occur, least someone catch them, which would effectively ruin not only both of their reputations, but possibly get him fired as well, despite him being her fiancé.

Takamiya rested his elbows on his desk, burying his face in his hands, his fingers twisting in his copper locks. When he wasn't scolding students or yelling, he didn't seem as intimidating. Actually, he looked rather nice.

"You were the only one who passed," he sighed, running his hands down his face before glancing up at her.

Her face remained emotionless, except for the minuet widening of her eyes at his confession. She played around with that thought for a moment; at first, she wanted to bask in her joy of being able to pass the supposedly very difficult ethics exam, but then her logical part came into play, and she remembered the way he had helped her cheat on a few questions.

"That was only because you helped me, Takamiya-sensei," she admitted bashfully, lowering her gaze to her feet. She fiddled with one of the buttons on her coat.

"No. No, I don't think that's why," he proclaimed, standing up and coming to stand before her. She gulped a little at his sudden close proximity, but then reminded herself she needed to get used to this. They would possibly be spending the rest of their lives' together. "I just think you're that bright." His compliment caused a blush to creep up her neck, and she rubbed at the side where her bow was tied, forgetting for a moment what was there. She flinched a little when her fingers pressed against the bite mark.

"Hm, what's wrong?" Takamiya gingerly reached out a hand, its destination clearly the ribbon around her neck. She backed away instantaneously.

"Nothing," she assured him, laughing easily. She had become well-versed in the art of lying, always having to cover for Yuuki when she would sleep in from having a rough night on duty, and prayed that her deception would work on him, too.

It didn't seem to do so well, for he still approached her once more and caught the end of the ribbon between his fingers before she could move again, leaving her in a slightly panicked state. She felt the ribbon shift against her neck as he dragged it through his fingers, trembling from the immense relief she felt when he didn't untie it.

"Is this new?" he titled his head in inspection, his bangs falling over his eyes. "It looks really familiar."

"Class hasn't even been in session for a month, Takamiya-sensei!" she quickly interrupted his musings. "You really couldn't know what belongings of mine look familiar or new."

"I suppose you're right." He released the ribbon and lowered his hands, yet a suspicious look remained on his face. "It just seems...odd. Having a ribbon tied around your neck."

Yori didn't really know why she was covering so strongly for Zero. After all, she was mad at him for doing what he did, wasn't she?

_No_, she thought in honesty to herself. _I just want to protect him. I want him to be the Zero he once was_.

She was confused, yes, but she believed that, if it were to get out that Zero was a vampire, he would be permanently removed from the Academy and sent who knows where. She believed that she was the only one in the school who knew about him, completely unaware of those who also knew of his other half. And so, that set root in her believing she needed to cover for him as long as possible. Which meant tying ribbons around her neck until the bite mark healed.

"Maybe. But, I tend to be an odd person," she replied quietly, trying to draw herself back in her shell she had grown so comfortable with staying in. Since Yuuki had left, she had, more or less, been forced out into the world, no longer having her other half tied to her side. And her fruitless endeavor to cheer Zero up had also caused her to become a little more sociable, or at least as sociable as the guy of few words and many glares would allow her to be.

She was slightly taken aback when Takamiya belted out in laughter.

"You sure are an odd one, Wakaba," he teased, reaching out to ruffle her hair. She shook her head in protest, smoothing back down the damage he had caused to it. "An odd one, indeed. But, I guess I'm lucky, after all."

Yori was puzzled.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because, normal is too boring to want to live with for a long time," he winked, his innuendo quite clear to her. "And, Kiryuu doesn't seem to like odd so much. He's more into the whole regal, classy type, it looks like."

Blinking several times, Yori resisted slamming her head against the wall, doing it mentally instead.

"Ah, Takamiya-sensei, you're really making no sense."

"Oh, but I am," he obviously knew what he was talking about, but he had lost her completely, and he was aware of it. "But it's not important right now," he looked up at the clock hanging above the door. "You should probably head back to your dorm."

She too checked the time, and with a bow to him, she eagerly left the room, still confused.

"That ribbon," he thought aloud, running his index finger along the side of his neck, stopping at the hollow of his throat. "Surely he didn't."

* * *

She had gone straight to her dorm room, not stopping for anything along the way. Reaching her door, her mind was set on one thing only; get her homework finished, and then wait the rest of the day out in her room. She didn't even want to go and eat dinner.

"I'll be glad when you come back, Naomi-san," she spoke to herself and reached for the key to her door, confused when it didn't take. Twisting the doorknob, she discovered it hadn't even been locked. "I thought I locked this." She stepped inside.

It was dark, too dark to even see her hand in front of her face, and the fact that Naomi had hung black out curtains the one night she had had a headache didn't help any. Without the aid of the outdoor light, Yori fumbled and felt along the wall, joyful when her fingers found the light switch. Shedding her coat, it dropped to the floor carelessly when she turned around, being met with a more than unexpected surprise when the light came on.

Sitting on the edge of her bed, arms crossed and long legs out straight, was the one person she had spent the entire morning making sure she avoided, only to protect hours later. After having been so careful to not be spotted by him, seeing him in her room baffled her.

Had he been here the whole day?

He watched her through narrowed eyes, snowy fringe covering the lilac daggers. At an agonizingly slow pace, he arose from the bed, arms still crossed, and took a handful of steps towards her.

"Z-Zero-kun, what are y-you doing here?" she laughed nervously as she spoke, which caused some of her words to break up. Unconsciously, she lifted her hand to her neck, pressing her palm over it gently.

Zero glowered.

"That." He took another step closer, and by now, Yori was pressed against the door. Not really able to think straight, she didn't reach for the doorknob until he was practically towering over her, his own hand gripping it instead. His arms had her caged, and she felt like a rabbit being pinned down by a wolf. Screwing her eyes shut, she awaited her assumed fate in his hands.

"Why don't you try and look a little more terrified from me being close?" he growled out, pushing away from the door and stalking over to the window. She cracked one of her eyes open. "As if I don't already feel guilty enough for what I did." His voice had dropped, and she barely heard his words. But as she watched him sink back down and grip his hair in his hands, she felt a wave of guilt crash over her.

"Zero-kun," she spoke to him after a moment of silence. "I didn't mean to make you feel bad." She truly regretted her actions now, because it had seemed to upset him.

He raised his head, but didn't look at her.

"You didn't."

Yori remained silent, giving him the go-ahead to speak if he so wished to.

"I have felt that way since the very second I did..._it_," he spit the last word through his teeth, it sounding like venom. His hands shook and he tightened them into fists. "And you, you wanted to_ help me_?" He laughed bitterly. "I'm nothing more than a damnable sin."

"That's not true!" she exclaimed, clamping her hands over her mouth as soon as she spoke. She didn't mean for the words to come out, but it was too late to take them back now. She attempted damage control by rewording and constructing a clever statement. "You're...a terrific hunter, from what I know about you. And you were a great Guardian for this school. Not to mention you're actually not so scary when you tone down those glares of yours," she smiled in thought of how she had spoken similar words to him at the horse stables a few months back.

But Zero wasn't buying any of it.

"What of it? You know what I am now," he looked over his shoulder at her, then back at his hands. "Yuuki found out in a way like this, as well," he sounded sad when he spoke of Yuuki, and she could understand why. She was when she did, too. However, she dared not speak, afraid she would cause him to close back up. This was the most he had ever bothered speaking to her about personal matters, and she didn't want him to stop now. "The only reason why it was so easy for us was because she was special. We had a bond that no one could ever have," he almost sounded as though he wasn't really speaking to her, lost in his own thoughts. But then his tone changed entirely. "You're just you. I'd expected you to run off and tell your precious Takamiya about what I did." His angry words caused a pain to erupt in her. She already knew she wasn't anywhere near as great when compared to her best friend, but to have him spell it out so clearly hurt her.

Crestfallen, she reached for the doorknob, ready to leave, or at least ask him to, when a thought struck her. Removing her hand, she walked to the side of the bed opposite of the sulking vampire.

"Yeah, I'm just me," she was seething, and her voice shook from all of the different emotions coursing through her. "But this me kept this hidden all day," she ripped the ribbon from her neck and threw it down. "This me avoided Takamiya-sensei while he was questioning me about what I was hiding." Building up enough bravery, she moved around the bed and stopped in front of him. He stole a glance up at her, meeting her rather angry expression instead of the tears he had expected. "And this me just wants to help you. But you keep shutting everyone out, even when you do something that's _not your fault_," she put emphasis on the last words.

"Wakaba, it is-,"

"Not. Your. Fault. So be quiet," she ordered. "Zero-kun, whether you like it or not, I consider myself to be your friend. And friends help each other when they're in need." She stared at him pointedly, and her eyes were full of such intense sincerity, he couldn't find it in him to look away from her. No one had offered up such sincerity to him so readily in a long time. "And right now, you're in need," she added in a whisper. Tentatively, she moved closer to him and reached her hand out, placing it on his shoulder as a form of comfort. "So, please," she begged in a hushed whisper. "Let me help you."

It was the exact words she had spoken last night that caused his stomach to twist in knots, but she had him at his breaking point.

Without warning, he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close to him. She let out a squeak from his actions, and he nestled his head against her stomach. Beforehand, she would have found their position shameful, but he had already drank from her, and she didn't think anything could get as intimate as that. Now, he was just a friend in need of major comfort and help. With soothing fingers, she gently combed through his hair, and his hands relaxed from their fisted form, covering a good portion of her back now.

He sighed, and she could feel his warm breath through her shirt, causing a shiver to run down her spine.

"Wakaba...," he whispered, almost as though he didn't want to break the tranquility of the moment.

"Hm?"

He shook his head against her, and she thought she felt his hands hold her a little tighter. Either way, she leaned her body down a little, just so she could wrap her own arms around his neck, her fingers keeping up their gentle movements through his hair, and rested her chin on the crown his head.

* * *

Er, not my best. And it's been over a week since I updated?! What's wrong with me? ~_~ Actually, I've had the flu, so please bear with me. I thought this one over several times in my head while I was actually awake. That, and playing otome games...

So, here's a getting well gift from me to you :)

Thank you time!

DrkSpphrGT: Oh no! Don't do that! D: Here's the update, so your 51st check will be of use! I spazzed out over your review, because it made me happy that that chapter caused spazzing. Spazzing is good in the fanfic world, in my opinion! They really are kind of like a drug xD Oh, and no, I don't have a Tumblr. Sorry :(

HYPERASSGIRL5: I really cannot resist vampire!Zero. At all. He's too sexy (why can't he be real?!) More so a love triangle now?

Anon: I really enjoy your feedback, and thank you for reassuring me that I've gotten them in line. Chapter 7...I don't even know what that was. But, I was actually playing around with the idea of bringing her back in later chapters, so I guess we'll just have to see.

Lakemet: My username? IdleScribe? xD Cant' resist a good Zero going vampy moment. It's such a wonderful thing ;D

Julianne: Woot for having sexy/sweet Zori moment in my story! I didn't think I could manage that like other authors have. Thank you! :)

Melany White: Don't worry, your English is good :) I am from a different country myself. I'm so glad my story caught your attention :) I will continue this, so don't worry. Thank you for your wonderful review!

*and to you awesome readers', keep reading! You all make my day that much brighter!

Until Chapter 10! (I can't believe we're that far in!)

-IdleScribe


	11. His Only Princess, Chapter 10

His Only Princess: Chapter 10

* * *

It was finally the weekend, and Yori couldn't have been happier. The past week had really taken a toll on her, and she felt that a few days on her own is just what she needed.

Pulling a light pink sweater over her head, she peered out the window, watching the snow gently fall while she fixed her hair with her fingers. It was such a peaceful scene, and her thoughts went wandering, not really focusing on one particular thing. Until she remembered last night.

Zero had stayed in her room for quite some time, well past curfew, which also meant well past any proper time for a young man to be in a girl's room. He had clung to her like she was the only thing holding him to the planet. Once he seemed to realize what exactly he was doing, however, he ripped himself away from her, pushing her to the side before rushing out, much like he had done the night he drank from her. But, she didn't go after him again, too shocked from having just been so close to him. Remembering the feel of his hands pressed against her back made her cheeks go warm.

Eyes shifting back over to the window, she decided that maybe going out and taking a walk would be a nice change from being cooped up inside. She tugged on a pair of dark grey wool stockings, which contrasted a little oddly with her otherwise light colored outfit, but she didn't mind that too much. Besides, she wasn't attempting to impress anyone, anyways. Lacing up her only other pair of boots—short, ankle-height black ones—as well as her ribbon around her neck, she donned her white winter coat, which almost reached her knees, and rushed outside, chest swelling with joy of being able to go out for a little while.

The hallways were empty, which confused her. Yori was certain that the students would be jumping for joy to get a break from their rigorous studies for an opportunity to go out and play around in the snow. Outside, there were a few people; a group of boys she had physics class with were huddled around each other, planning some kind of elaborate snowball fight. She recognized one of them as the Sun Dorm President, and a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. Ever since he had taken it up on himself to keep everyone calm when Rido attacked, he had gained more friends, and even though they could not remember why they had befriended the brave boy, they still had a strong bond with him. It made her glad to see him with actual friends instead of being constantly picked on. Further down the way, a couple Yori had seen sneaking around after curfew a few times was snuggled together on a bench under a large oak tree, completely absorbed and content with each other's company.

She felt a small surge a jealousy course through her, and it shocked her. She had never been one to think a relationship was necessary, and always said she didn't need a boy to make her happy, which was the exact opposite of her best friend. Yuuki had been head-over-heels for Kaname Kuran, and Yori was certain she held some sort of love for Zero, too, just like he did for her.

But, when her mind produced an image of the silver-haired male, her heart sped up while her stomach felt as though it did a little flip. Yori had become aware of her small crush on him some time after she had learned of his feelings for Yuuki, and then she assumed she had more than likely had a crush on him for a while and just wasn't aware of it until learning of him having feelings for another. Of course, she would never, ever tell him. She was happy he had found a person who made him happy, even though said person never seemed to realize how much pain she caused him. Plus, she wasn't even friends with him. It would be weird of her to confess to someone she didn't even have a friendly bond with.

"But, we're friends now, aren't we?" her question was as quiet as the falling snow. She toyed with that idea for a few minutes, when her mind forced her to remember someone else's face.

Takamiya's messy bronze colored hair and kind face invaded her thoughts, causing a sheet of guilt to sweep over her. The man had been nothing but kind to her; a little forceful at one point, but still very, very kind. He even apologized, and let her in, revealing several things about himself that she would not have expected. And he was her fiancé. There was _no way_ she would even _consider_ cheating, even if she still wasn't completely sure about whether the engagement would follow all the way through or not. Takamiya had been a complete gentleman, giving her space to make the decision, but also subtly allowing her to get to know the man who may just become her future husband. He was kind, handsome, and really a sweet guy, once you got past his teasing exterior.

Puffing her cheeks out in frustration, she blew out slowly, watching the white cloud of breath fading in front of her.

"This is so awful of me," she groaned quietly, covering her face with her hands. She was still walking, though, so she didn't see who she was fastly approaching. "Why? Why did it have to be me?"

"Talking to yourself, Wakaba?"

She gasped at the sound of his voice, her head snapping up to meet his amused eyes.

"Takamiya-sensei." She could already feel the heat creeping up her face at the fact of being caught talking to herself.

Takamiya was leaned up against a tree, his arms crossed over his chest. He was dressed in a maroon colored knit sweater, which complimented his hair very well, making a sort of reddish color stand out in it, paired with khaki slacks and a black trench coat, unbuttoned. To top off the entire look, a devilish looking smirk graced his handsome face. He leaned forward, taking long-legged strides until he was a foot or two short of being right in front of her.

"Well?" he raised an eyebrow in question.

Yori scratched the back of her head, averting her gaze to her shoes, scuffing at the snow at her feet.

"Ah, well…yeah," she admitted lamely. She started when she felt a hand under her chin, lifting her head. When did he even move?

His smirk grew, and he removed his hand from her face to ruffle her hair.

"You're too cute, Wakaba," he stated warmly, making her go wide-eyed. Even though they were engaged, she couldn't get over the fact that it seemed so wrong that a teacher would say those kinds of things to his student. But, before she could think too much on it, he proposed to her a plan. "Would you like to accompany me in town today?"

"Accompany you in town?" she repeated incredulously, to which he nodded.

"Yes. I have a few errands I need to run, but it gets rather lonely going there alone. So, what do you say?"

"Hm…sure. Why not?" she smiled up at him, which made his heart race. Face breaking out into a full smile, he placed his hand against the small of her back, holding it there tentatively for a few seconds to see if she would move away from him, but when she didn't, he pressed it more firmly against her back and led her out the iron gates that surrounded the campus.

* * *

"Oh, look at this!"

She hadn't expected to really enjoy her time in town with Takamiya, but she was now standing in front of yet another shop window, admiring the glittering decorations within it.

Every time she would stop, Takamiya would stand a few feet back from her, watching with an amused smile. Out in town, they weren't teacher and student, but Kaito Takamiya and Sayori Wakaba, an engaged couple who were getting to know each other better each and every day. No school rules binding them, and no certain ill-tempered Hunter looming over them, glaring them both down.

Yori glanced over her shoulder at him, beaming brightly.

"Isn't this pretty, Takamiya-sensei?" He saw her pointing to a set of crystal that was adorned with white, making it appear like a mini Winter Wonderland. Nodding, he moved closer to her, bending over to examine it closer, a clever idea sneaking in his mind.

"It is. Almost as much as you are," he whispered, chuckling a little when her face went a deeper shade of red from embarrassment. "Would you like for me to buy it for you?"

She backed up and gawked at him openly.

"No! I couldn't possibly let you do that," she shook her head furiously, ready to set off down the sidewalk when he reached out, dragging her back to him by her wrist.

"Really, it's not that big of a deal," he reassured her, the sly grin still playing at his lips. "However, I have one condition for doing this."

Yori watched him warily.

"What is it?"

"Stop calling me Takamiya-sensei while we're out here." He still held her wrist in his semi-loose grip. "And allow me to stop calling you Wakaba."

"That's two things, Takamiya-sensei," the ever-logical Yori pointed out, slightly flustered from his request.

"I suppose it is," he smiled down at her, releasing her from his hold. "But still, is it really too much to ask?" He sounded a little concerned when he stated the question, worried that he had crossed a line with her that would cause her to back out of their deal.

"Well," she looked to the side, her heart skipping a beat when she thought she caught a familiar shock of silver. But, in the blink of an eye, it was gone. "I guess not."

"Then...may I call you Sayori?"

"Yes," she smiled up at him, reaching out and giving his hand a reassuring squeeze when she noticed the timid look on his face. "I suppose you would like for me to call you...?"

"Kaito," he answered readily, but then backtracked. "Only if, you know, you're comfortable with that." He rubbed the back of his neck, and Yori thought she saw a faint pink tinting his cheeks. Really, he was a humble sort of man.

"It's fine. I'm okay with it...Kaito."

The sound of his name finally being spoken by her made a shiver roll down his spine and warmth to bloom in his chest. A goofy grin spread across his face, making her giggle lightly at how ridiculous he looked, but he didn't care. She still held his hand, and he tightened his own around hers, tugging her into the little shop behind him.

* * *

Both of them were completely worn out when they returned to Cross Academy, having just barely beaten sundown. The paper bag hanging from the crook of her arm brushed against her legs as she walked, irritating her. She kept trying to adjust it when it was completely taken away from her.

"Huh?" She looked up at Takamiya, who now had the bag on his own arm.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. Thank you."

Takamiya grunted in response, blush creeping across his face for the second time that day. He ducked his head in order to hide it from her and other passerby students.

"Would you like me to walk back to the dorm with you?"

"I'll be fine. You've already done so much for me as it is," she motioned to the bag still swinging from his arm. "I'll take that." He handed it back over to her, and she bowed politely to him. "I really had fun today."

"Me too. Well then, I guess I'll be seeing you in class next week." He tapped her nose lightly before turning to walk away, stopping when she called out to him.

"Mm. See you then. Thank you, Kaito!" she unknowingly had gotten a little bit used to calling him by his first name since she had been doing so for so many hours. It slipped out almost naturally to her now.

Takamiya let out a short laugh, shaking his head and waving to her over his shoulder before stalking off towards the Academy building. Yori stood there for a good minute, watching him until he disappeared, and then looking down at the bag which held her crystal present.

"Thank you," she whispered happily, heading inside.

* * *

The young man slammed his fist against the wall for what seemed like the thousandth time. It was starting to get really sore now, but he didn't care. He'd inflict any sort of pain at the moment to get his mind off of the other that was torturing him. His throat felt as though he had swallowed white-hot daggers and sandpaper, and, as much as he hated them, he had taken over half of the vile white tablets, hoping for some relief. It helped him none, though; if anything, it only made the pain worse, teasing him with a substitute of what he had had just a couple of nights before. Real blood. _Human blood._ Strangely enough, there was also a dull ache in his chest, which he played off as an effect of the burn in his throat.

His platinum hair fell in his eyes, still damp from where he had submerged himself in icy water only an hour ago, as well as his clothes, which clung uncomfortably to his skin, and his neck had pale red scratches on it from him dragging his nails down it, trying his best to not rip it out. His thoughts ran rapid, going back to the only thing he knew could alleviate the pain, but logically knew was wrong and absolutely did not want to revert to doing again. He remembered her fear, the avoidance that came afterwards. But even more so, he remembered what happened straight after the incident.

* * *

_Finally, his grip loosened enough for her to slip away from him, tumbling down to the chilly tile floor. Her body convulsed with shock and fear-filled tremors and everything had an almost technicolor hue to it. She felt as though she could vomit and pass out right then and there, but she forced both feelings down, too fearful to lose consciousness. Bringing a hand up to her stinging neck, she drew it back shakily to examine her blood covered palm, the ivory skin tainted entirely crimson. _

_Zero swiped the back of his hand over his own blood stained lips, regaining his sense of judgement, but really wishing he hadn't. The trembling, teary, _bloody_ mess of a girl on the floor before him made him sick with anger and guilt. He watched as she made to rise to her feet, stumbling and almost falling flat on her face. Reaching out, he caught her easily in his arms, supporting her entire weight on his chest. Her eyes were shut tightly and her breath came out in short gasps, but he couldn't figure out if she had passed out or was just trying to steady herself. The scent of her blood still obviously hung thickly in the air around him, but he was at himself enough to hold everything at bay. He didn't think either of them would be able to handle this again. _

* * *

_There's no way,_ he thought bitterly, going back to his abuse on the wall and his fist. But his thirst was determined to make him think differently, agonizing heat clawing up his throat as his mind assaulted him with memories of the scent.

Backing up against the wall, he connected the back of his head with it with a loud bang. He ground his teeth together, his hands flying back up to his neck, nails sinking into the soft skin there.

* * *

Her eyes drooped with sleep, but she didn't want to sleep just yet, even though she had already changed into her sleepwear. Sitting up at her desk, she admired the present bought for her as it glistened in the orange glow of her table lamp. Carefully, she poked at it with her pinky, trailing it down the grainy surface. Glitter from it layered her skin, making it shimmer silver.

In her slap-happiness from being tired, a round of giggles sputtered out from her. Finally deciding that it would be best to get some sleep, she gave her present one more appreciative look, pushed away from the desk and trudged over to her bed, flopping backwards on it. Really too lazy and worn down to get back up, she shimmied and wriggled until she was somewhere near the headboard and clawed at the perfectly tucked in blanket, fighting with it until she could manage to pull it over herself, snuggling deep into the bed's warmth and closing her eyes. Behind her eyelids, images outlined in silver danced in the black. Or was the entire image silver? It almost resembled her crystalline wonderland.

As she slipped further into slumber, the silver image developed a figure, standing before her. It held a hand out to her.

**_"Yori?"_ **

Their voice is nice. It's caring, yet quite stern sounding. In her dream, she reached for them, feeling their slightly chilled hand wrap around her own.

_**"Stay way from him."** _

From who? She didn't understand. But, they sounded worried, and a little angry, too. They gripped her hand tighter, tugging her towards them. However, their face was still shrouded in fuzzy silver, making it impossible to see them.

**_"He's no good. It's not healthy for you to remain next to him. Stay with me." _**

What felt like another hand reached up, touching her face. Even though it wasn't the warmest of touches, it still felt nice, and she leaned further into the palm of their hand.

_**"Promise me, Yori."**_

_I promise. _

Even though it seemed she had no voice, they apparently understood what she was trying to communicate to them, and, finally, a feature of their face became visible. A soft smile, almost a smirk. They yanked her towards them, just as the suffocating dark of a soon to be dreamless sleep swept over her, erasing their existence.

* * *

Alright, my smart little cookies! That last sentence is hinting to BIG events to occur, so what are your predictions?

This chapter was much anticipated, however, no Zero. Except for a little beating up blurb. The boy likes hurting himself, it seems.

I've been getting ready for University entrance exam, so that's what took me so long :( I'm sorry!

So, onto my reviewers', who came at me left and right:

**DrkSpphrGT****:** Holy dear smoke! I hope all of your family is healthy now! And I hope you didn't get sick, too :( I stayed healthy, and am almost fully recovered. So, obviously, Kaito hasn't figured out anything yet, but he certainly is suspicious. There will be plenty more bites ;) I skimmed through the raw 89...and ahhhh! It just fueled my dislike for Yuuki that much more. But, I am glad he forgot her. However, he'll probably remember =_=" Also, I did a little research when I saw your icon (I absolutely love Jae!), and we've got a bunch of similar things that we like! Haha ^_^ Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this!

**HYPERASSGIRL5: **I wish Zero was real, too. Oh, how I do. And Prussia. And Gamzee. Don't get me started on the guys I wished were real xD

**Tia****:** I am sorry if you don't like the way my story is written :( Um...the best I can do is just keep trying to improve as I continue writing.

**Anon****:** Thank you :) I'm trying to make everything ready for a lovely little triangle/potential square.

**Lakemet:** Happy late birthday! Your birthday is a day after mine :D I will never abandon this, so don't ever fear that, okay?

**Julianne**: You're so sweet :) Thank you for worrying about my health. But, even if I have the flu, I'd still love to see what you thought of the chapter :)

**Elune**: I agree. She is very confused, but then, if you had Kaito and Zero basically competing for you, what would you be? ;)

**Blah-Chan**: Hahaha! I thank you, and welcome you with the rest of us. We're all pretty much great Zori shippers.

**Aym**: I felt they did too, and even though it isn't canon, I still love it ^_^ Thank you very much!

**ShinigamiCelty**: Your name makes me think of Death Note :) I won't give up on it! I hope you love this chapter, too!

*and you other wonderful readers', thank you, too! You all are awesome!

Until chapter 11!

-IdleScribe


	12. His Only Princess, Chapter 11

His Only Princess: Chapter 11

* * *

"There was absolutely nothing good about my sleep last night!"

Even though she had went to bed fully intent on sleeping well since her day had been one so productive and fun, she kept tossing and turning throughout the night, waking up what felt like every hour to her. It was already late morning, and the sun had crawled up high in the sky, shining brightly through her thin white curtain—she had taken down Naomi's blackout ones while she was away—making her squint while she peered out the window.

A new layer of snow coated the ground, covering up all of its imperfections from the day past. Unconsciously, her fingers traced up her neck, and she silently wished that her skin was the like that, like the snow. While the bite marks had finally faded, it had been an extreme pain to have to hide them every day, and since she couldn't just opt to wear a scarf during class since it was against dress code, she had to suffer with that itchy bow around her neck for almost a week.

Heaving a breathy sigh, Yori shifted and lift herself off of her bed.

* * *

Town was quiet. Headmaster Cross had granted her permission to leave campus and go out for a few hours, as long as she promised to stay in heavy traffic areas of town where she would always be close to the public, which was easy to promise. While she was a rather independent, reserved person, after everything she has witnessed over time, being in the company of others always made her feel more at ease than being all alone. Even though only a few pedestrians wandered the cobbled paths, it wasn't an uncomfortable emptiness.

Yori glanced in almost every shop window she passed by, much like she had during her walk in town with Takamiya the other day, and a small part of her wished he was there to accompany her now. He was right when he said it got lonely going to town by oneself, which surprised her; going to town alone used to be an activity she loved to do.

"Oh well," she mumbled and smiled a little, making her way to a bookshop where the owner was just now turning around the **OPEN **sign.

* * *

By the time noon had came around and the sun was in the middle of the sky, Yori had her arms full of new books, plus a little bag with a treat from the bakery. She walked a little more, making her way to a seating area with barren trees, benches and a small pond, that was now frozen over, and brushed off a spot on one of the benches, taking a seat and placing her book pile neatly in her lap. Thumbing through her newly acquired stash, she reached over and plucked her treat from its little paper bag while she picked a newest reading material, settling on one with a odd title but a very interesting cover.

"His Only Princess," she recited. It sounded a little too romantic for her, being the realistic girl she was, but still, she was quite intrigued by its looks. On the cover was a very cliché looking damsel type character, but something about her was also off from the original "damsel in distress" type. What it was, Yori couldn't put her finger on, but that also wasn't what had caught her eye. Behind what she supposed was going to be the main female character of the story was a very dashing looking man, dressed in all black with a silver mask over his eyes and cheekbones, leaving only his lower face exposed. The two of them where in a..quite intimate looking pose for a book cover, she thought, looking as though they were about to kiss, but she found it kind of tender and sweet appearing. "This looks really...oh!" She gasped in surprise when her eyes wandered further down the cover, catching a figure she hadn't seen earlier, probably because it was pretty dark in the bookstore. It was another man, equally handsome appearing as the first, only somewhat more sinister. He was below the loving looking couple with his hands gripped in the bottom of her dress, as though he was trying to tug her away from the first man. "A love triangle?" Now, Yori was quite intrigued, partly because she had witnessed a love triangle unfold before her own eyes before, and partly because some small part of her wanted her to desperately be that hopeless romantic and swoon over these types of things. Thumbing through the pages, she soon was immersed within the story world, completely loosing track of time.

* * *

"Excuse me, young Miss?"

Yori looked up quickly, shocked. Standing in front of her was an elderly grandfather with a kind smile on his weathered face. Standing up in a rush, she almost spilled her large pile of books before correcting herself and bowing politely to the man before her.

"May I help you, Ojisan*?" she smiled at him.

He returned the smile, his already wrinkly eyes crinkling up even more until they were hardly able to be seen.

"I am the grounds keeper for these sitting areas, and I am afraid it is closing time now," he spoke with a gentle voice, the smile staying on his face the entire time.

Yori was shocked.

"Closing time? Ojisan, what time could it be now?"

He seemed to sense her frantic change of behavior, and chuckled softly.

"Do not worry, young one. It isn't that late; it is actually," he lifted his coat sleeve, checking his watch. "Only half past six. Do you have somewhere you need to be?"

Hearing the time, some of her worry drained from her, but she still knew she had passed the curfew Headmaster Cross had given her, and he would certainly be angry once she returned to the Academy. Gathering her books in her arms, she waved his question off with a hand.

"It's nothing to worry about. Thank you, Ojisan. I'll be taking my leave now," she waved to the elderly man as she walked away.

"Have a safe walk back to wherever you came from, young Miss!" he called after her.

She looked over her shoulder at him one last time, and then jogged hurriedly down the road back to the Academy. It had gotten progressively colder, and somehow, she hadn't noticed. Supposing she must have been far too involved with her book at the time, she shrugged it off and tightened her scarf around her neck, picking up her pace slightly when she noticed that the street she was on was entirely barren.

"That's weird." A chill worked its way up her spine as she continued to walk, the air around her only growing colder the further she went. Any sound she heard sent her heart racing, which she thought was a very bad thing.

_What if one of them is behind me?! _Her mind screamed while she tried her best to calm her racing heart. Where was Takamiya when she needed him? Even better, where was Zero and his trusted Bloody Rose? Where was _anybody _when she needed them?

"Okay, just relax," she chanted to herself under her breath, taking slow, even breaths, allowing each of them to strip some of the chilled fear from her bones. "Everything is fine, everything is okay. You're fine, and no one is—,"

"Excuse me, lady?"

Yori froze at the little voice behind her. She really, _really_ didn't want to turn around, but at the same time, the voice behind her sounded like it belonged to a young child. Balling her fists up at her sides, she debated in her head for a few seconds about whether or not to turn around when the little voice called out once more.

"Lady, can you help me? I lost my mommy and I'm scared."

_I suppose that decided it for me_, she thought a little wryly, but she felt her heart break at the poor sounding child behind her. Slowly, she turned to face them, and came face-to-face with a little boy who couldn't be any older than five. He really looked scared, and tears were beginning to shine in his large brown eyes. Tentatively, she took a few baby steps closer to him, and another thought crossed her mind._ Would a vampire use crying a tactic? _She honestly felt bad for having such thoughts while watching his cherub-like face and his little mouth quiver, but nowadays, no one could be certain about who was one, and that was what frightened her the most.

"W-where did you last see your mommy?" she asked, mentally cursing herself for stuttering. If there was any chance that he could be a vampire, showing any sign of fear would result in a horrible fate for her. To cover her blunder, she straightened up as tall as she could make herself, looking down her nose at him.

He looked around him carefully, shrugging his shoulders a few times.

"I don't remember. I was walking with her, and she told me to wait at the fountain while she went shopping for my birthday. But she never came back!" By now, he was wailing his words out, and his voice echoed off of the buildings around them, fading into the encroaching darkness.

"Okay, okay!" she whispered hurriedly, relaxing from her rigid position. If she was sure of anything by now, it was that he was more than likely not a vampire. However, the chances of her wandering back into town with him were non-existent, so she had to think of another plan. "Um...say, do you like sweets?" she asked, hopeful. Still though, he continued to cry, not even seeming to acknowledge her question or the fact that she was even there anymore. "Hey, little boy—,"

"Ryutaro? Is that you I hear?"

The little boy, Ryutaro, stopped his screaming and crying almost immediately, turning his head frantically in search of the owner of the voice.

"Mommy!"

Out of the shadows, a tall woman slinked out, moving almost like skittish liquid. Every move she made made her seem like she was on edge, and the fast pace at which she moved made Yori want to reach her arms out and grab the little boy and run. She finally made her way to the boy, stooping down to wrap her arms tightly—too tightly, it seemed—around his small body.

"Oh, Ryu. I've been looking all over for you. Where did you go?"

Ryutaro sniffled and clung to his mothers dress.

"Where you told me to go. I really didn't leave, I promise! But then you didn't come back, and this nice lady was going to help me find you."

Immediately, the woman's stony eyes zoned in on Yori, and it felt like her veins filled with ice water while bile rose in her throat.

"Were you?" she attempted to sound grateful, but her voice was cold and cackled slightly when she spoke.

"Ah, well, I was-he was very upset and—,"

"Thank you, then" Ryutaro's mother bit out, clutching him to her side possessively. He didn't seem to mind how forceful she was acting towards him, but it unnerved Yori in every way possible.

Still wary of letting him leave with his mother, Yori decided it probably best if she just high-tailed it and went on her merry way back to the Academy. Bowing her head to the mother and offering a small wave and smile to Ryutaro, she turned on her heel and marched quickly up the street, wanting so badly to turn around and see if they were still standing there or walking away.

_Maybe I can pretend to be staring around at things, _she thought, _kind of like...a tourist! _She had seen a few tourists around before, and they always stopped and looked at everything. So, she did. Stopping in front of a little trinket shop, she pretended to admire the things through the window, taking a few breaths before glancing to her side.

Ryutaro and his mother were no where around to be seen.

"I was so worried over nothing," Yori almost laughed from the sense of relief she felt, dropping her tourist act and heading back on the path to the Academy.

She hadn't gotten very far when she heard a snapping sound resonate somewhere behind her. Her boots scuffed against the snow covered concrete as she once again stopped in her tracks.

It was quiet once more, the only sound being her erratic breathing and a few hoots from an owl somewhere far away. Sighing at herself, she hit her forehead lightly with her fist a few times when something reached her ears, sending ice shards up her spine.

"Excuse me, lady?"

Before she had time to react, something latched onto her back, holding tightly around her neck, almost strangling her. Her hands flew up to her attacker, clawing at their coated, little arms, and her mind matched the voice with the little boys face from only a few minutes ago. Ryutaro.

"Good job, Ryu."

His mother soon appeared before her, looking entirely different than she had moments ago. Now, her hair was wild and stringy, falling in her face, covering up her wide, crazed eyes.

"Now, I think it's time for our reward."

"Y-yo-your r-reward?" Yori stupidly stumbled over her words, shaking in fear now as the boy released himself from her neck. He wrapped his small hand around hers and practically dragged her over to his mother with a surprising amount of force. The woman lifted her nose to the air, taking a long inhale before smiling, revealing a mouthful of sharp, grey-white teeth.

"You smell divine."

With lightning fast speed, she lunged at Yori, wrapping her hands around her neck and pulling her against her. Yori fought against her all that she could, kicking back and pulling at her hands.

"No, no! Let go of me!" she screamed out, hoping that someone would hear her and help. She jabbed her elbows back, hitting the vampire woman in the stomach, but it didn't affect her much. "Let go of me! Please, someone help!"

* * *

Zero had finally managed to relax himself enough to fall into some sort of state of sleep. He was on his bed, curled on his side with his knees brought up to his chest, eyes screwed shut and hands covering his face. Finally, the burn in his throat had settled down some, and he could focus on other things—

"...someone help!"

—other things like that, he assumed, forcing his eyes open. He waited for only a second, hearing the person scream out again, and then rushed out of his apartment, not bothering with a coat or even closing his door behind him.

* * *

"Get...off of me!" Yori screamed out again, still struggling as hard as she could while the crazed vampire attempted to sink her teeth into any part of her skin. Ryutaro hadn't really done much but stand there and watch what was happening. That was, until his mother ordered him otherwise.

"Ryutaro! Help mommy! Grab her legs."

Like lightning, Ryutaro had his body wrapped around her lower half, looking up at her with the same crazy look that his mother possessed. And with the added restraint, Yori could no longer use her lower half to fight the vampires off.

"Get off, get away from me! Help!" In one final, desperate attempt to free herself, Yori lowered her head to the hands at her her neck, turning until her mouth was against the vampires forearm. Opening her mouth, she pushed all thoughts of how insane this was and bit down on her forearm, hard, earning a piercing shriek from the vampire, who in turn loosened her grip from around her neck. Even though the action made her feel like an awful human being, she brought her fist down on the child vampire's head as hard as she could, definitely knocking some sense out of him, as he let go of her legs after a few seconds. Even though the woman vampire still had a pretty decent grip on her, she now had more room to fight.

"Haven't you had enough, vampires?"

The voice like knives broke the hysteria, and before anyone could turn to face him, a click was heard and _bang!_went the Bloody Rose, a perfectly aimed bullet going through the woman vampires head. She immediately released her grip on Yori, who stumbled and fell to the ground from the sudden action, screaming and shrieking before evaporating into nothing.

Ryutaro looked almost sad, but it was only for a brief second before he lunged at the weapon wielder, who didn't even think twice before aiming his gun at the small child and pulling the trigger once again. Yori watched in absolute disbelief as Ryutaro, too, vanished into nothing.

The purple afterglow from the Bloody Rose shone for a few seconds before fading, and Zero pocketed his weapon once again before taking notice of who the vampires almost-victim was.

"Wakaba?"

Yori's head snapped up, and despite everything that had just happened, the amount of relief that washed over her was too great now.

"Zero-kun!" she scrambled to her feet, almost tripping, and reached out, latching her arms around the Hunter's lean torso.

Zero was surprised by her actions, and didn't really know what to do. Things had obviously been weird between them since their own incident, and while they had made up, they were never that close to begin with, so any kind of physical contact with her still deterred him. He raised his hands and gently laid one against her upper back, barely touching her, judging his own and her reactions. Her heart was racing from her fear, and with her so close, her scent assaulted him to no end. But, surprisingly, even though the pain in his throat burned and throbbed, it was something manageable, at least at the moment. And she didn't seem to be scared off by him touching her; actually, she wrapped her own arms tighter around him.

"I was so scared," she mumbled, her words muffled by his shirt, but he still heard them. Taking a shaky breath, she spoke again, her voice trembling. "I was so scared!"

"Shh, it's okay now," Zero offered up comforting words and pressed his hand fully against her back, letting his other one come up to the back of her head, holding her close to him. She turned her head and buried her nose against his lower chest, which made his heart flutter. "Don't cry."

* * *

Hi guys! So, I'm back after a very long, very unexpected hiatus. Really, it was unexpected. There's been quite a few things going on, so it made it literally impossible for me to update. I have wanted to, though! And I really hope you all have held on to some hope for this story.

Did anyone catch what Yori is reading? Why not add my own story, within my story? Hahaha *wink wink, nudge nudge*

I was totally going to add the whole "hey, why don't Zero and Yori go to his apartment?" in this chapter, but it's already late, and I feel that would be dragging this one on for too long and...yeah. It'll be a flashback in the next one. A long, long flashback, because I've missed writing about these two :')

***Ojisan **is a Japanese term used towards an elderly man or an older male citizen.

Please, my wonderful readers', continue supporting this story and reading! Your support means very much to me! :)

*Also, I don't know if she's still on hiatus, but one of my incredible readers' Lakemet has written some incredible stories on here, and I promised a long time ago I'd promote them. So go check some of those out!

Until chapter 12!

*P.S. Make sure you check my profile regularly for update dates! Those will be posted once I get the chapter post dates planned out! (:

-Anzu-chan (formerly IdleScribe)


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